Seven killed in Dubai air crash

The helicopter crashed on the Maersk Resilient

Seven people were killed when a helicopter crashed into an oil rig off the coast of Dubai, officials say.

The victims were a Briton, an American, a Filipino, a Venezuelan, a Pakistani and two Indian nationals, the country’s Civil Aviation Authority said.

The helicopter crashed into the deck of the rig during take-off, Petrofac, the operator of Dubai government’s offshore oilfields, said in a statement.

An investigation is under way into the cause of the crash.

The incident happened on at 2020 (1720 GMT) on Wednesday.

The Aerogulf Bell 212 helicopter, carrying two crew members and five passengers, was on a routine flight from the Rashid oil field, 70 kilometres (43.5 miles) from Dubai, Aberdeen-based company Petrofac said.

“During take-off the helicopter crashed onto the deck of the Resilient, the Maersk jack-up drilling rig,” it said.

“The aircraft then broke up and fell into the sea.”

The helicopter accident happened off the coast of Dubai

The company added: “Immediately following the incident, a fire broke out on the main deck of the drilling rig which was quickly contained and extinguished.”

The company said there were no survivors on board.

There were no additional casualties on either the drilling rig or the platform.

All operations on the Rashid field have been suspended and the platform and drilling rig have been secured, Petrofac said.

The company confirmed that the victims were foreign contractors and said that their relatives were being informed.

Nine feared dead in US air crash

Nine people are missing feared dead after a helicopter carrying  firefighters crashed on its way to a forest fire in northern California.

The helicopter went down on Tuesday night about 35 miles (56km) north-west of Redding in a remote area.

The cause of the crash of the Sikorsky S-61 was not immediately known.

The helicopter was carrying 11 firefighters and two crewmen. Four people are being treated in hospital for burns.

Two are said to be in critical condition and two serious.

Ian Gregor, spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration, said the helicopter was destroyed in the crash.

The firefighters had been tackling a blaze that was covering 27 sq miles (70sq km) of the Shasta-Trinity National Forest.

Investigators are being sent to the scene.