Four Killed, 11 Injured as Italian Military Helicopter Crashes During EU Training in Bosnia

An Italian CH-47 Chinook helicopter serving with the European Union force in Bosnia and Herzegovina crashed during routine training near Brcko on Thursday evening. Four people on board were killed and 11 were injured, the force said.

The helicopter was carrying 15 people, all Italian nationals, according to the Italian government. Italy’s defence ministry said the four people killed were two members of the Italian armed forces and two members of the Italian Red Cross military volunteer corps.

Of the 11 injured, two were taken to a medical facility in Tuzla and the remaining nine were treated in Brcko, according to the European Union Force, known as EUFOR. The force said all 11 were in stable condition. Local emergency services and EUFOR liaison teams reached the site and moved the victims to medical centers in Brcko. EUFOR said no civilians were injured and no civilian property was damaged.

Investigation under way

EUFOR said it had opened a full investigation into the cause of the crash and would release more information once the facts are verified. No cause has been given. The force also asked the public not to spread unverified claims about the identities or nationalities of those involved.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni wrote on X that her thoughts were with the victims, their families and all personnel working for peace and stability in the region, and she offered the Italian government’s closeness to them. EUFOR said it was profoundly shaken by the deaths and offered its sympathies to the families and friends of those killed.

The helicopter was operating as part of Operation Althea, the European Union peacekeeping mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina that oversees implementation of the Dayton Peace Agreement, which ended the Bosnian War. The mission is currently under Italian command.

Reporting based on coverage by ANI, Qazinform and Al Jazeera.