Nepal earthquake: US military helicopter goes missing on aid mission

 
Rescue workers search for survivors amid the rubble in Kathmandu (Picture: Getty)
Sebastian Mann12 May 2015

A US military helicopter delivering aid to earthquake victims in Nepal has gone missing with eight people on board.

However there have so far been no indications the aircraft - carrying six Marines and two Nepalese Army soldiers - has crashed, US officials said.

Today Nepal was rocked by a second major earthquake in the space of a month, leaving at least 42 people dead and more than 1,000 injured.

Army Col Steve Warren said the US Huey helicopter, carrying tarps and rice to areas affected by the two catastrophes, had dropped off supplies in one location and was en route to a second site when contact was lost.

Officials are hopeful that the aircraft is simply missing because there has been no smoke or other signs of a crash, he added.

Col Warren said a Nepalese air brigade unit had seen the Huey, so Marines in V-22 Osprey aircraft searched near that last known location for about 90 minute but found nothing.

Because it's now dark, members of the Nepalese Army were tonight conducting the search on foot and moving toward the second aid location to see if the helicopter landed near there.

The aircraft is part of Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 469, and the incident is under investigation.

There are about 300 US troops in Nepal assisting with the rescue mission, using a variety of aircraft including helicopters and cargo planes.

Additional reporting by PA

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