Two soldiers killed and another missing as helicopter crashes into river near town in Germany during test flight
TWO members of the German Armed Forces have been killed and another remains missing after a helicopter crash in Saxony.
The civilian chopper, operated by the Bundeswehr, went down on Tuesday morning near the Golzern gauge station on the Mulde river.
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Remains of the civilian helicopter seen afloat the Mulde River
The search for the missing crew member continued overnight, with the German Air Force deploying a Eurofighter equipped with a high-resolution reconnaissance pod to scour the crash site.
German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius confirmed the deaths, describing the crash near the eastern town of Grimma as a tragedy.
One crew member remains unaccounted for, according to The Brussels Times.
Air Force Commander Holger Neumann said the loss marked 'a dark day for his troops,' adding that the highly experienced crew had set off from base at 9 am for what was meant to be a routine training flight.
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According to the Defence Ministry, the helicopter went down during a test flight.
By Tuesday evening, Pistorius said around 200 emergency personnel were on site, while a military security zone had been established to aid rescue efforts and investigations.
The cause of the deadly crash remains unclear, but German outlet Bild reports that steel cables stretched across the Mulde may have played a role.
The thick supporting cables, part of a cable crane system used to measure water flow at the gauge station, reportedly sag slightly due to their massive weight — one alone weighing around four tons.
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