A Pakistan Army helicopter crashed in the mountainous Diamer district of Gilgit-Baltistan on Monday, killing all five personnel on board, the military has confirmed.
In a statement, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said the MI-17 helicopter was on a routine training flight when it developed a technical fault and went down around 10:00 a.m. local time (0500 GMT).
The victims included two pilots, two crew members, and a flight engineer. Local police earlier reported that the aircraft appeared to have crashed during a test landing on a proposed helipad in the area, which is a popular tourist destination.
The incident comes just weeks after another government MI-17 helicopter crashed in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province while conducting flood relief operations, killing all five crew members on board.
Pakistan has witnessed several fatal military helicopter accidents in recent years. In 2022, a crash during flood relief operations in Balochistan claimed the lives of five servicemen, including one of the army’s top commanders.
Authorities say investigations are underway to determine the exact cause of Monday’s crash.
