VIP helicopter crash-lands in southwestern Russia

[News_Editor]

VIP helicopter crash-lands in southwestern Russia

2011-08-31 19:08:39 GMT+7 (ICT)

STANITSA ZELENCHUK, RUSSIA (BNO NEWS) -- A VIP helicopter with 13 people on board crashed at a resort in southwestern Russia on Tuesday, as it was on its way to an opening ceremony of a ski lift at the resort.

The Mi-8 twin-turbine helicopter crash-landed just short of its target at the Arkhyz ski resort in Russia's North Caucasus, the Moscow Times reported on Wednesday. According to reports, sudden wind gusts destabilized the aircraft as it was attempting to land.

Moments after the crash, three tour buses passed by the same area, which were heading toward the same ceremony. The buses were full of journalists, who rushed toward the crash site.

Some of the injured - including the aircraft's mecanic Vitaly Kongra and pilot Sergei Formintev - were carried to one of the buses, which transported them out of the area. The bus rushed down the rocky road to a hospital located in Crossack village Stanitsa Zelenchuk. The other two buses continued toward the resort.

Maxim Bystrov, Kremlin's deputy envoy to the North Caucasus Federal District, his assistant Yekaterina Boyenko, and Vladimir Berezhnoi, the deputy head of the North Caucasus Resorts company, were transported in a white Mercedes to the same hospital.

Medical officials confirmed that Kongra has suffered spinal and head injuries, as well as a broken leg. The other passengers on board also sustained injuries, although some only had minor scratches and bruises. Bystrov eventually made it to the event and addressed the media.

None of the injuries were reported to be life-threatening, but investigations are ongoing as the reason of the accident is still uncertain.

The new ski lift is part of Kremlin's $16 million program to invest and build new ski resorts in North Caucasus to boost the region's economy and touristic sites.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2011-08-31

[ExpatOilWorker]

The buses were full of journalists, who rushed toward the crash site.

Lets see some pictures then....