Indonesian Mi-17 Crash Kills Four Onboard

An Indonesian military’s Mi-17 crashed during a training exercise on the country’s Java island on Saturday, killing four onboard.

Five other crew members were injured in the accident. The men were in the middle of a flying lesson when the chopper crashed and caught fire in central Java province.

"The incident killed four crew members and injured five others," said Nefra Firdaus, Indonesian Army spokesman, in a statement.

The helicopter was found to be in a good condition during pre-flight checks. A probe has been launched to ascertain the cause of the accident.

Last June, the Army’s Mi-17 crashed reportedly owing to bad weather conditions, killing 12 persons aboard. The aircraft had disappeared shortly after taking off from an airport in the district of Oksibil in Pegunungan Bintang regency in Papua.

"I think the pilot had attempted to re-direct the helicopter to the original location due to foggy weather, but when the helicopter turned, it crashed into the mountain," Major General Herman Asaribab, commander of the Regional Military Command (Pangdam) XVII/Cenderawasih, had said following the incident.