Hydroplane and helicopter collide above water near Moscow, 8 bodies recovered

On Saturday evening, a Cessna hydroplane and a Robinson helicopter collided in the air above Istrinskoye water reservoir near Moscow. Two two aircraft fell apart and collapsed into the water.

Photo: Source: Pravda.Ru photo archive

A man who eye-witnessed the event, said that it was the pilot of the hydroplane that was trying to perform a dangerous maneuver in the air and struck the rotor of the helicopter. According to the eyewitness, it was the pilot of the hydroplane who was guilty of the air crash.

Sergei Plekhanov, an instructor at paragliding club "Free Fly Team," said that the hydroplane was flying behind the helicopter. The pilot of the helicopter could not see the hydroplane that was flying behind at a higher altitude. The collision occurred at the moment when the two aircraft were on one and the same route.

After the collision, rescuers recovered the bodies of eight people who were on board the two aircraft. Two of the victims are children.

Alexander Khrustalev, the chairman of the board of directors of Heliport of Russia, told Pravda.Ru that both the hydroplane and the helicopter were private aircraft.

"The helicopter and the hydroplane were private aircraft, but the helicopter was conducting its flight in accordance with the law. The route of the helicopter had been coordinated accordingly. The hydroplane appeared unexpectedly, no one has seen it there before," Alexander Khrustalev said. The pilot of the helicopter had no chance to avoid the collision, the expert added, because the pilot of the helicopter could not see the hydroplane approaching from behind.

Pravda.Ru

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