Helicopter crash kills 3 in north Tehran

A helicopter belonging to Iran’s Red Crescent Society has crashed in northern Tehran mountains killing all three people onboard.

The helicopter crashed at around noon local time in Darband region just north of Tehran, according to reports in the Iranian media.

Earlier reports had indicated that the chopper belonged to the Iranian Army’s air forces.

However, the managing director of Iran Helicopter Support and Renewal Company (IHSRC), told Fars News Agency later in the day that the copter belong to Iranian Red Crescent Society and was involved in a drill for Tehran Disaster Management Headquarters.

Mohammad Ali Ahmadabadi added that the helicopter was taking part in a drill for the headquarters when it hit the mountain and crashed.

The governor of the Shemiranat district had already announced that three people onboard the copter have been killed.

“According to initial information … all three people onboard have lost their lives,” Ezatollah Khan-Mohammadi told Fars News Agency.

The Iranian official added that an investigation has been launched to identify the prime cause of the incident.

Another report by the IRIB News showed that the copter was of the Bell 212 type.

Two bodies were recovered in the subsequent rescue operation, while the third body was discovered a few hours later at a distance from the crash site (shown below), the spokesman for Iran’s Red Crescent Society Hossein Derakhshan, told reporters.

However, Derakhshan rejected claims that the chopper belonged to the Red Crescent, noting that all the organization’s 17 helicopters are stationed in their bases.