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Pakistan says all aboard military helicopter killed in crash in Pakistani Kashmir

By Reuters Reuters
Pakistani Army officers and people offer prayers as they attend the funeral of the victims, who died after an Mi-17 helicopter of Pakistan Army Aviation crashed near Muzaffarabad on Wednesday during take-off, in Muzaffarabad, Pakistani Kashmir, June 11, 2026. Picture taken with a mobile phone. REUTERS/Naseer ud Din
Pakistani Army officers and people offer prayers as they attend the funeral of the victims, who died after an Mi-17 helicopter of Pakistan Army Aviation crashed near Muzaffarabad on Wednesday during take-off, in Muzaffarabad, Pakistani Kashmir, June 11, 2026. Picture taken with a mobile phone. REUTERS/Naseer ud Din Naseer Ud Din Reuters

MUZAFFARABAD, Pakistan - All personnel on board a military helicopter have been killed in a crash near Muzaffarabad in Pakistani Kashmir, Pakistan's military said in a statement on Wednesday, without specifying the number of deaths.

"An Mi-17 helicopter of Pakistan Army Aviation crashed near Muzaffarabad today during take-off due to technical fault," the military said in a statement. "There were no survivors."

Rescue teams have reached the site and a board of inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the exact technical cause of the accident, it said.

The helicopter crashed while taking off and caught fire, a Reuters witness said, adding that firefighters were trying to control the flames.

(Reporting by Tariq Maqbool, writing by Hritam Mukherjee; Editing by YP Rajesh)

People and police gather nearby as smoke billows from the site where an Mi-17 helicopter of Pakistan Army Aviation crashed near Muzaffarabad, Pakistani Kashmir, June 10, 2026. Picture taken with a mobile phone. REUTERS/Tariq Maqbool
People and police gather nearby as smoke billows from the site where an Mi-17 helicopter of Pakistan Army Aviation crashed near Muzaffarabad, Pakistani Kashmir, June 10, 2026. Picture taken with a mobile phone. REUTERS/Tariq Maqbool Tariq Maqbool Reuters

Copyright Reuters or USA Today Network via Reuters Connect.

This story was originally published June 10, 2026 at 11:18 PM.

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