Bangkok : Nine Thai army officers were killed when their helicopter crashed into a field in Phayao province Monday evening.
Deputy army spokeswoman Sirichan Ngathong confirmed that none of the nine people on board the Bell 212 helicopter survived the crash, Xinhua reported.
The search and rescue team discovered the bodies of all the nine at 8.15 p.m. local time
Maj. Gen. Songpon Thongjeen, the Third Army’s deputy area commander, was on board the chopper that left an army camp in Phayao bound for an army base in Chiang Rai province.
The helicopter had been in the air for about 10 minutes when controllers lost contact with it, according to the spokeswoman.
The cause of the fatal crash was not known, but soon after the helicopter lost contact, rescue officials were sent to find the helicopter.
The helicopter was found engulfed in flames in a field near a village a short distance from the army camp.