Vietnam Military Helicopter Goes Missing

October 18, 2016 – A Vietnamese official and state media say a military helicopter with three people on board went missing during a training flight earlier today, in the latest such incident involving military aircraft.

Local media said the Eurocopter EC 130, a light training helicopter produced by Airbus Helicopters, lost contact 15 minutes into a flight and was believed to have crashed into a mountain 80 kilometers (50 miles) east of the southern commercial hub of Ho Chi Minh City.

It says a pilot and two trainees were on the helicopter.

A provincial border guard says smoke was spotted at the suspected crash site, but rescuers have not been able to reach the spot.

Three crashes involving military planes that killed 11 people have been reported over past two months.