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A Russian Mi-8T helicopter carrying 22 people has gone missing in Kamchatka, according to a statement from The Federal Air Transport Agency's (Rosaviatsiya) press service on Saturday.
"Preliminarily, there are 22 people on board the helicopter: three crew members and 19 passengers," the statement said.
The helicopter was conducting a flight from a site near Volcano Vachkazhets to the Nikolaevka site, located 17 kilometers (10.5 miles) southwest of Yelizovo Airport.
However, the helicopter failed to make scheduled contact with air traffic control around 7:15 a.m. Moscow time.
Rosaviatsia reported that another Mi-8 helicopter had been dispatched to search for the missing aircraft.
The missing helicopter is operated by the airline "Vityaz-Aero" according to the aviation authority.
The Kamchatka Transport Prosecutor's Office has launched an investigation into compliance with flight safety regulations in connection with the incident.
Additionally, the Kamchatka Transport Investigation Department of the Eastern Interregional Investigative Committee of Russia is conducting an inquiry under Article 263 of the Russian Criminal Code (Violation of Safety Rules for Air Transport Operation).
TheFederal Agency forAir Transport (Rosaviatsiya) is afederal executive body that provides government support inmanaging Russia's state-owned property intheair transport industry (civil aviation).
It controls theairspace oftheRussian Federation, air navigation services within Russian airspace; aeronautical search andrescue; air transport security andthegovernment certification ofaircraft ownership rights andrelated transactions.
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