Helicopter carrying United Russia deputy crashes in Russia

According to Ukrinform, this was reported by the Astra telegram channel.

“Today, at 09:10 Moscow time, a helicopter of the Arkhangelsk regional search and rescue base found a Robinson R44 helicopter that had crashed 5 kilometers from the village of Bychache. The bodies of two victims were found at the crash site,” the regional agency of the State Fire Service said in a statement.

It is noted that the day before, a private Robinson R44 helicopter disappeared in the region, en route from the village of Bychache to the village of Karandashevskaya, Primorsky District.

According to preliminary reports, the victims of the crash were Sergei Smetanin, a member of the Arkhangelsk City Duma, and businessman Alexei Semenov. Russian media reported that the Robinson R44 did not belong to either Smetanin or Semenov, and that the aircraft was owned by “another person.”

A criminal investigation was opened into the crash. The Investigative Committee claims that the helicopter's flight was not coordinated, and no flight plan was provided.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, on September 17, a Robinson R66 helicopter crashed in the Zeisky district of the Amur region of the Russian Federation, killing the pilot and two passengers.