One died and 17 were hurt in the crash of a Mil Mi-8 helicopter in Yamal, a source at the Investigation Committee told Itar-Tass. The Mi-8 crashed 300 meters away from the helicopter pad, close to the Obskaya-Bovanenkovo railroad line, at about 9:00 a.m. Moscow time on Sunday. "The helicopter had 18 people onboard, including 15 passengers and three crewmembers. The crew commander died, and 17 people were injured," he said. "The Urals transport police branch of the Investigation Committee opened a criminal case over the breach of air traffic rules," he noted. "A helicopter was sent to the crash scene for transporting the injured to hospital." The Federal Air Transport Agency said that the helicopter crashed while landing for refueling. It was carrying 15 geologists from Labytnangi to the Bovanenkovo deposit. The helicopter of the Yamal airline was performing the flight amid polar night, the source said. This is the second accident of the sort in the past month. A Mil Mi-8 of the Novosibirsk aircraft repairing plant crashed while flying from Kyshtovka in the Novosibirsk region to the southwestern segment of the Krapivinskoye oil field in the Omsk region. The helicopter caught fire. Eight passengers died, and three crewmembers were injured.
