A Mi-8 helicopter carrying 22 people went missing on Saturday in the Kamchatka region of Russia’s Far East. The helicopter had just taken off from near the Vachkazhets volcano and was en route to Nikolayevka, a village located roughly 16 miles away when contact was lost. The local governor, Vladimir Solodov, confirmed that the helicopter disappeared at 4:15 p.m. local time and shared this information via a video on Telegram.
The missing helicopter had 19 passengers, primarily tourists, along with three crew members. At the time of its disappearance, the local weather service reported poor visibility in the area, which could have contributed to the loss of contact. Notably, the crew did not send out any distress signals or report problems before the incident occurred.
Mi-8 Helicopter with 22 People Missing in Kamchatka, Russia, Amid Poor Visibility
Kamchatka, situated approximately 3,728 miles east of Moscow and 1,242 miles west of Alaska, has a history of aviation accidents involving the Mi-8 helicopter. In August 2021, a Mi-8 crashed into a lake in the region under poor visibility conditions, resulting in the deaths of eight people out of the 16 on board. Earlier that year, in July 2021, a plane crash on the peninsula claimed the lives of all 28 occupants, including 22 passengers and six crew members.
The Mi-8, a twin-engine helicopter designed in the 1960s, has faced several incidents in recent years in the Kamchatka region. Authorities are currently investigating the disappearance of this helicopter while search and rescue operations are underway to locate the missing aircraft and its passengers.
