KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia—During a training session on Tuesday, two Malaysian military helicopters collided in midair and crashed, killing all ten troops on board and wounding a swimmer in a pool, according to police.
According to a brief statement from the military, the incident happened as the helicopters were practicing at a naval facility in the northern state of Perak for the navy's 90th anniversary celebration. It stated, "On site, all victims were confirmed dead."
Many helicopters are seen flying low in a formation in a video that has been making the rounds on social media that is allegedly from the event. Both helicopters plummet and crash when one of the helicopters veers sideways and strikes the rotor of the other.
The two helicopters were incomprehensibly damaged. In order to locate the deceased, rescue personnel picked through the rubble. Authorities claimed that among the dead were seven males and three women, ages 26 to 41.
The country is in mourning over the "heart and soul-wrenching tragedy," according to Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who also announced that the navy will launch a quick inquiry to determine what caused the event.
According to the navy, seven of the crew members who perished were on an AW139 maritime operations helicopter. The manufacturer of such aircraft is AgustaWestland, a division of Leonardo, an Italian defense firm. The other three were riding in a lightweight Fennec chopper produced by the multinational European military company Airbus.
Friday prayers for the victims will take the place of this Saturday's anniversary celebration, according to Defense Minister Mohamed Khaled Nordin.
According to Mr. Khaled, when the crash happened, there were seven helicopters practicing. One flew onto an abandoned athletic field, and the other plummeted into a neighboring swimming pool. He also mentioned that a swimmer was hurt when he was struck by flying debris.
