Greek army helicopter crash-lands on Kalymnos, six safe
A Greek army helicopter suffered a mechanical fault and made a heavy landing on the island of Kalymnos, with none of the six people aboard seriously hurt, officials said.
A Greek army UH-1H helicopter made a heavy landing at Kalymnos airfield on Thursday morning after suffering a mechanical fault in its tail section, the army's general staff said. All six people aboard were taken to Kalymnos health centre as a precaution.
The helicopter, assigned to the 1st Army Aviation Brigade, was on a surveillance flight for the 80th Higher Infantry Battalion Command when the incident happened at about 10:25am, the general staff said in a statement. The crew were in good health, it said, and the causes of the incident are under investigation.
Kalymnos mayor Yiannis Mastrokoukis told ERT the helicopter lost its tail section at a height of about three metres before the hard landing, but said there were no serious injuries and those aboard were expected to be discharged from hospital soon. "Luckily, within our bad luck, we didn't have anything serious," he said.
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What we know
- 2+ outlets · NewsIT, ERT News A Greek army UH-1H helicopter made a heavy landing at Kalymnos airfield at about 10:25am on Thursday after a mechanical fault in its tail section.
- Official · mayor All six people aboard were taken to hospital as a precaution; none was seriously hurt, the mayor said.
- Official · army's general staff The causes of the incident are under investigation, the army's general staff said.
Not yet confirmed
- Unconfirmed An earlier report that the six aboard were hospitalised for treatment; the army said they were taken in only as a precaution and were in good health.
How each fact is established: Verified checked by an ECTV editorOfficial stated by an official body2+ outlets reported independently by two or more news organisations1 outlet reported by a single news organisation so farUnconfirmed claimed or reportedHow we label facts
Why it matters for Europe
The helicopter was flying a surveillance mission tied to the Kos-based 80th Higher Infantry Battalion Command, part of Greece's military presence on the eastern Aegean islands near Turkish waters.
Sources
Reported by 2 reports from 2 independent outlets in 2 countries.
Source balance
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Questions and answers
- Where and when did the helicopter land heavily?
- At Kalymnos airfield in Greece at about 10:25am on Thursday.
- Was anyone hurt?
- No one was seriously hurt; all six aboard were taken to hospital as a precaution, the mayor said.
- What caused the incident?
- A mechanical fault in the helicopter's tail section, according to the mayor; the army says the full cause is under investigation.
This article was written with AI assistance from 2 verified reports and checked under the ECTV editorial policy. Spotted an error? Request a correction.