Five UK personnel die in Afghanistan helicopter crash

Five British service personnel have been killed in a UK helicopter crashed in southern Afghanistan.

The Ministry of Defence has said the crash is currently under investigation, but said enemy action is not believed to be the cause.

The crash happened near Kandahar air base and killed all personnel on board the helicopter.

It represents the third single biggest loss of life of British troops in Afghanistan since the conflict began.

A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: 'We can confirm that a UK helicopter crashed in southern Afghanistan today.

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Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends affected by this tragic event'

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'The incident is under investigation and it would be inappropriate to comment further until families have been notified.'

The crash is understood to have happened around 30 miles from the Pakistan border, near Kandahar air base in the Takhta Pul district.

It is the first fatal accident involving a UK military helicopter in Afghanistan since the conflict began in 2001.

'Tragic event'

The BBC's Caroline Wyatt said sources had suggested the cause of the crash may have been 'technical problems' on board the helicopter, despite claims by the Taliban that its fighters had shot it down.

BBC defence correspondent Jonathan Beale said he understood the helicopter was a Westland Lynx Mk 9.

The fatal crash comes after a Nimrod surveillance aircraft exploded in mid-air while supporting Nato ground operations near Kandahar, killing all 14 servicemen on board, in September 2006.

This incident remains the biggest single loss of UK life at one time in Afghanistan.

In 2012, six British soldiers were killed when a Warrior armoured fighting vehicle in Kandahar province was hit by an explosion.

The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) coalition of international forces said it was still in the process of reviewing the circumstances of Saturday's helicopter crash.

'Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends affected by this tragic event,' it said in a statement.

Defence analyst Paul Beaver said all the indications are that the crash involved a Lynx helicopter, which he said has an 'exceptional record'.

'Focus on weather'

He said the light utility helicopter is likely to have been operating in 'fairly mountainous areas', or in 'challenging' terrain.

'The key now will be looking at the weather,' Mr Beaver told the BBC.

'If enemy action is not suspected, which is what the MoD is saying, then you have to look at whether this might well be weather-related.'

The crash brings the total number of international troops killed in Afghanistan in April to seven.

The last major helicopter crash took place in December last year, when seven Americans and four Afghans died.

In August 2011, the Taliban shot down an American Chinook near Kabul, killing 30 Americans and eight Afghans in the deadliest single incident for US troops since the war began.

Concerned family members can contact the MoD's Joint Casualty and Compassionate Centre on 08457 800 900.