The flight engineer of an Mi-26 helicopter died when it made a hard landing in the Khanty Mansi autonomous district in west Siberia on Tuesday, the Federal Air Transport Agency said.
“Flight engineer Igor Eroshkin was killed as a result of the accident,” the agency said in a statement.
The landing occurred at 8:43 a.m. Moscow time (04:43 GMT). According to the airline that owns the aircraft, Nefteyugansk United Air Group, the helicopter went into an uncontrollable spin while landing near an oil plant at low altitude, collided with the ground, and caught fire. “The helicopter was carrying about 15 tons of diesel fuel,” the spokesman said.
Earlier it was reported that the helicopter belonged to UTair.
According to preliminary information, there were six people on board the aircraft. The spokesman said two helicopters with rescue teams and doctors started off for the scene.
The Mi-26 is the world’s largest serial transport helicopter.
