Two dead after Army helicopter crashes on training flight

Investigators fear the chopper may have flown into powerlines before plunging into the ground.

One man was pronounced dead at the scene while his critically injured colleague was airlifted to the North Devon District Hospital at Barnstaple where he later died.

Emergency: An ambulance at the spot where an army helicopter crashed in Devon

Eye witnesses told how the single engined French-built Squirrel helicopter came down close to the Devon hamlet of Kingscott at around 3.45pm.

The helicopter is thought to have flown into powerlines and villagers reported a series of power cuts in the area.

Two rescue helicopters - from RMB Chivenor in North Devon and the Portland Coastguard in Dorset -  along with the Devon Air Ambulance, arrived at the crash site within minutes of the accident.

The scene of the army helicopter crash in which two people died

A South Western Ambulance Service spokeswoman said: 'We arrived at the scene at about 4pm to find there were two people involved. One was dead and we found the other in a life-threatening condition and he was flown to North Devon District Hospital.'

Devon and Cornwall police said there was no damage to buildings and the helicopter had come down in a rural area. Roads and lanes in the surrounding area were immediately closed.

'Power lines were brought down in the area and some homes lost power. We are still trying to discover if these were brought down by the aircraft,' added a police spokesman.

It is thought the helicopter had been involved in a low flying exercise minutes before the crash.

Last night local farmers claimed the area was often used for training military pilots - including some from nearby RAF Chivenor, near Barnstaple, where Prince William was training last month.

Farmer Paul Herniman, 39, witnessed the crash as he tended his cows and said: 'I noticed two helicopters flying over the valley and one of them hit a power cable as it was going low over the trees and it went down.

'I was getting my cows in and heard a very loud bang. I wanted to go over but the power cable was down and I knew that meant a 33,000 volt live wire on the floor so it was too dangerous.

'The other helicopter was circling trying to land but they must have had problems too. Then a bigger helicopter arrived, possibly a Sea King, which landed to help them. Soon the whole area was full of police and other helicopters.'

An MOD spokesman said next of kin had been informed.

' We can confirm an Army training helicopter crashed today in Devon,' he said. 'Sadly, we can confirm that both service personnel on board have died.

'Our thoughts are with their families and friends at this difficult time.The next of kin are currently being informed.

'We will confirm further details once this process has been completed.'

The spokesman would not confirm from which RAF base or training establishment the helicopter had flown.

The Ministry of Defence currently has 38 Squirrel's in operation with the majority based at  RAF Shawbury , Shropshire, where the Defence Helicopter Flying School (DHFS) is based.

However, some Squirrel's are based at Middle Wallop in Hampshire by the 670 AAC (Army Air Corps) Squadron where they are used for operational training.

Others are also thought to be flown from RAF Chivenor.

There have been a number of fatal crashes involving both commercial and military Squirrel helicopters in recent years.

An experienced flying instructor was killed and three other people injured when two RAF Squirrels collided at Tern Hill, near RAF Shawbury in Shropshire, in January 2007.

In May 2007 multimillionaire tycoon Phillip Carter, 44, died in a Squirrel helicopter with his son Andrew, 17 as they returned from a Chelsea football match.

The businessman's best friend Jonathan Waller and pilot Stephen Holdich also died in the crash in woods near Mr Carter's mansion in Wansford, near Peterborough.

Former World Rally champion Colin McRae was killed with his son and two family friends when the Twin Squirrel he was piloting came down in the grounds of his family home in Lanarkshire, Scotland, in September last year.

On October 22, 1996, Chelsea vice chairman Matthew Harding and five others were killed when their AS 355F1 Squirrel crashed near Middlewich, Cheshire.

The Squirrel comes with a single or twin engine, costs around £500,000 and can be fitted out to a luxurious specification by its maker, Eurocopter.

There are currently around 1,000 of the helicopter's in operation around the world.