A helicopter belonging to the German armed forces crashed on Monday near the town of Hamelin in northern Germany, police said

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 01st July, 2019) A helicopter belonging to the German armed forces crashed on Monday near the town of Hamelin in northern Germany police said.

"A Bundeswehr helicopter has crashed in the Aerzen-Dehmke area. Numerous firefighters, rescuers and police are at the site," Hamelin police tweeted.

The crash site in the state of Lower Saxony has been cordoned off. German media reported that at least one person had been killed.

Two German Eurofighter jets collided in midair in the neighboring state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania last Monday. One pilot died, while the other ejected to safety. </s> A helicopter of the Bundeswehr, the unified armed forces of Germany, crashed in Lower Saxony, killing one person and seriously injuring another, the German armed forces confirmed on Monday.

The accident happened on Monday afternoon in Aerzen District, according to local German police.

Fire had broken out around the crash site which was close to a forest area, said a spokesperson from Aerzen’s local fire brigade.

The helicopter was part of the Buekeburg Military Aviation School, the spokesperson, who was not named, confirmed.

The German training helicopter was in a low-flying exercise shortly before the crash.

Only last week, two Eurofighters of the German Armed Forces collided during air combat exercises and crashed in Mecklenburg, Western Pomerania.

Both pilots had managed to operate their ejection seats. A flying instructor had survived the accident, while the second pilot died in the accident. </s> A military helicopter crashed near the northern city of Hanover, the German armed forces said on Monday.

The Bunderwehr confirmed that one of the pilots was killed while the other is in the hospital. Authorities have yet to determine the cause of the crash.

"Our thoughts, our grief, our sympathies are with the relatives of the pilot," German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen said during a visit to the crash site.

The military vehicle — a twin-engine light EC 135 — belonged to the Bundeswehr's central helicopter training center, which is located roughly 30 kilometers (18.6 miles) away from where it went down.

Emergency services, including firefighters, were deployed to the scene, police in Hameln said in a tweet.

Read more: German military sees rise in soldiers suffering from PTSD

Aging equipment

The armed forces have been plagued by aging hardware, prompting calls for more funding to modernize its equipment. Some politicians have even called for an end to military exercises in the country.

This isn't the first deadly accident to hit the Bundeswehr this year. Last week, two Eurofighters collided in midair, killing one of the pilots.

Read more: Eurofighter crash leads to calls to end military exercises

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ls/rc (Reuters, dpa) </s> Two Eurofighter military jets have crashed in the northeastern German state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, said Germany's air force, the Luftwaffe.

Both pilots ejected and one of the pilots was found alive, hanging in a tree canopy after deploying his parachute.

The other pilot was pronounced dead; police found human remains in the area.

The pilots were part of a trio of Eurofighters flying a mission out of Laage, near Rostock on Monday.

They were part of the Tactical Air Force Wing 73, known as "Steinhoff," a fighter wing that specializes in general air defense and is the chief training center for pilots of the Eurofighter Typhoon in Germany.

After the crash, two plumes of smoke could be seen about 10 kilometers apart

Read more: Only 4 of Germany's 128 Eurofighter jets combat ready — report

The aircraft collided shortly before 2 p.m. local time (1200 UTC) near Lake Müritz, about 120 kilometers (75 miles) north of Berlin.

'Today is a day of mourning'

Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen has announced there would be an investigation into the incident.

"Today is a day of mourning and anguish over the loss of our soldier," she told journalists after visiting the crash site with state Interior Minister Lorenz Caffier. "We share in the grief of the relatives."

Witnesses shared video footage of smoke billowing from two sites reportedly about 10 kilometers apart. Reports emerged that the wreckage had caused fires but that the flames had been extinguished.

At least part of the wreckage fell on the area of Malchow, with police warning locals not to approach. The Luftwaffe said the aircraft were not carrying ammunition.

aw, dv/rc (AFP, dpa, AP)

Bundeswehr struggles with faulty defense equipment Faulty tanks and grounded helicopters — today in the German military Frustrated soldiers and a defense system struggling to repair its way into a fully functioning military. And a new defense minister who will have to regain confidence from army representatives.

Bundeswehr struggles with faulty defense equipment Defective helicopters Ageing helicopters have proved a big hurdle for the German military. The Bundeswehr has grounded all its 53 Tiger helicopters, after engineers said technical faults needed attention. Defense services were also forced to recall 22 Sea Lynx anti-submarine helicopters in 2014, confirming newspaper reports of malfunction.

Bundeswehr struggles with faulty defense equipment Manufacturing fault The Eurofighter is the German military's most modern fighter jet. As a result of a manufacturing error, only four of the 128 planes were in action in 2018. A pilot was killed in June 2019 when two Eurofighters collided in the northeastern state of Mecklenburg- Western Pomerania, prompting fresh calls for further restriction on the plane's use.

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Bundeswehr struggles with faulty defense equipment Not making any tracks New Puma tanks for the German tanks came into use in 2018. Only 27 of the 71 Pumas were immediately ready for deployment — which prompted a fresh backlash against then Defense Secretary Ursula von der Leyen.

Bundeswehr struggles with faulty defense equipment Glitches at sea New F125 frigates — but they are't ready yet. German plans to replace the old frigates stalled in 2018, due to there not being enough spare parts to make them seaworthy. Officials also said Germany would have to soon stop signing up to NATO and UN missions in the same year — the country just did not have enough ships spare.

Bundeswehr struggles with faulty defense equipment Headache for AKK? She has not been in the job long, but Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer has inherited a huge problem. Old equipment being grounded is now a regular and pressing occurrence. Former Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen signed a deal to develop a "Future Combat Air System" in June — which is scheduled to replace Germany's air force by 2040. Author: Sven Pöhle / db



DW sends a daily selection of hard news and quality journalism. Sign up here. </s> At least one person has been killed and another seriously injured after a military helicopter crashed in northwestern Germany, local media reported.

The crash occurred near the neighborhood of Hameln in Lower Saxony, according to German media, citing a spokesperson for the fire service.

The aircraft, whose type is not yet known, hit a corn field at the edge of a forest. The crash sparked a fire on the ground, the local fire brigade said on Twitter.

Meanwhile, police cordoned off the entire crash site while the blaze was extinguished. Hameln is located just 30km away from an international helicopter training center in the town of Bueckeburg, according to Die Welt.

The Eurocopter H135 helicopter was flying an air force training mission out of Bueckeburg.

The crash occurred just one week after a pair of the German Air Force’s Eurofighter jets collided during flight training in the northeastern state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.

Both pilots managed to eject after the collision but, hours later, the Air Force reported that one of them had been found dead.

Think your friends would be interested? Share this story! </s> The Tiger type army combat helicopter with two pilots onboard crashed for unknown reasons around 12:20 GMT/UTC about 70 kilometers (43 miles) northeast of Gao in eastern Mali, the Bundeswehr said on Wednesday.

"Onboard the helicopter were two service members, who died in the crash," the Bundeswehr said in a statement.

The German soldiers were taking part in the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Mali (MINUSMA). The German military said UN forces had been dispatched to the crash site to carry out an investigation.

UN Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq said that the helicopter had been monitoring ground "confrontations," which means the site of the accident must be secured before MINUSMA teams can access it.

Initial information suggests the crash appeared to be an accident and there were no signs of attack. German news magazine "Der Spiegel" reports that the Bundeswehr suspects a technical fault to have caused the crash.

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier said that the news of the deaths filled him "with great sadness" and that his thoughts were with the pilots' relatives. He also emphasized that Germany's mission in Mali was "an important contribution towards stabilizing the situation in Mali," according to a press statement.

Chancellor Angela Merkel and Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen also expressed their condolences.

German contributions in Mali

Around 875 German troops are currently taking part in the 13,000 strong MINUSMA mission aimed at stabilizing the country and supporting a peace agreement between the government and rebels.

In January, the German parliament approved an increase in the number of German troops that could be deployed to Mali, upping the number to 1,000.

The decision came after the Netherlands pulled its own helicopters out and Germany decided to fill the gap by deploying NH-90 transport helicopters and Tiger type combat helicopters. The Bundeswehr contingent also includes transport aircraft, refueling aircraft, anti-personnel tanks, and unmanned drones.

In addition to the UN mission, Germany has about 350 soldiers based in the south of the country as part of a EU training mission for the Mali army.

Dangerous mission

Mali is considered one of the world's most dangerous UN missions, with more than 120 blue helmets killed in the past four years.

The country descended into a spiral of instability in 2012, when ethnic Tuareg rebels and other groups took advantage of a power vacuum left by a military coup in the capital Bamako to take over northern Mali in a bid for independence.

But the rebellion for Tuareg autonomy was quickly hijacked by Islamist militants, including al-Qaeda aligned groups. These were strengthened by a flood of arms, as well as the instability that followed the international intervention that helped oust Libyan strongman Moammar Gadhafi.

The jihadist advances led former colonial power France to intervene in January 2013. France largely pushed back the jihadists but they remain capable of carrying out attacks.

While the French intervention has ended, French soldiers remain as part of a larger counter-terrorism operation in the Sahel region. The UN deployed a peacekeeping mission in July 2013 to replace the French mission.

The June 2015 peace accord was signed between the Malian government and Tuareg rebels and other northern rebel groups, but excludes jihadists.

Watch video 12:03 Share Fighting Islamists - German deployment in Mali Send Facebook google+ Whatsapp Tumblr linkedin stumble Digg reddit Newsvine Permalink https://p.dw.com/p/2Wypy Fighting Islamists - German deployment in Mali

cw/bk (dpa, AFP) </s> BERLIN: A German armed forces helicopter crashed in northern Germany on Monday, killing one pilot and injuring another, Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen said.

The pilot who survived the crash of the Eurocopter EC135 was being treated in hospital, von der Leyen told reporters.

“The cause of the crash is so far completely unclear,” von der Leyen said, adding that the military would investigate the incident thoroughly. “This is a tragic moment for us.”

Both pilots had undergone comprehensive training to fly the EC135 and had each completed 450 flight hours and were training as flight instructors, she said.

The incident comes a week after one pilot was killed when two unarmed German Eurofighter jets collided over northeastern Germany. </s> BERLIN (Reuters) - A German armed forces helicopter crashed in northern Germany on Monday, killing one pilot and injuring another, Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen said.

The pilot who survived the crash of the Eurocopter EC135 was being treated in hospital, von der Leyen told reporters.

“The cause of the crash is so far completely unclear,” von der Leyen said, adding that the military would investigate the incident thoroughly. “This is a tragic moment for us.”

Both pilots had undergone comprehensive training to fly the EC135 and had each completed 450 flight hours and were training as flight instructors, she said.

The incident comes a week after one pilot was killed when two unarmed German Eurofighter jets collided over northeastern Germany. </s> BERLIN, July 2 — A German armed forces helicopter crashed in northern Germany yesterday, killing one pilot and injuring another, Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen said.

The pilot who survived the crash of the Eurocopter EC135 was being treated in hospital, von der Leyen told reporters.

“The cause of the crash is so far completely unclear,” von der Leyen said, adding that the military would investigate the incident thoroughly. “This is a tragic moment for us.”

Both pilots had undergone comprehensive training to fly the EC135 and had each completed 450 flight hours and were training as flight instructors, she said.

The incident comes a week after one pilot was killed when two unarmed German Eurofighter jets collided over northeastern Germany. — Reuters
In Lower Saxony, Germany, a Bundeswehr helicopter crashes, killing one of the pilots.