Seven people killed in helicopter crash near Tuscany

Bodies of four Turkish and two Lebanese businessmen found alongside that of pilot after aircraft disappears from radar

An Alpine Rescue helicopter flies over the crash site in Tuscany (Corpo Nazionale Soccorso Alpino e Speleologico/Reuters)

Seven people have been killed in a helicopter crash near Tuscany.

Eugenio Giani, the governor of the region in central Italy, said the helicopter had crashed in a mountain area on the border between Tuscany and Emilia Romagna on Thursday.

He said that search and rescue teams were focusing on Mount Cusna, at the top of the Apennines on the border with Tuscany, as of Saturday morning.

Mr Giani posted an update on Saturday afternoon to confirm that five bodies had been found, before he confirmed a short while later that the remaining two had been located.

He wrote on Facebook: “No survivors in the tragedy of the missing helicopter that left Lucca on Thursday and crashed on the Apennine on the border with Tuscany.

“Our region expresses great sorrow and condolences to the families of the pilot and the victims, seven in total.

“I would like to thank the hundreds of people from the Armed Forces, Law Officers, Firefighters, Alpine Rescue, Civil Protection, Prefectures, Municipalities and volunteers who have continued the search non-stop for days.”

The prefect’s office in the city of Modena confirmed that rescuers had found the bodies of six passengers – four of Turkish and two of Lebanese nationality – who had been on a business trip to Italy, as well as that of the Italian pilot.

An Alpine Rescue helicopter flies over the crash site near Pievepelago, Italy (Corpo Nazionale Soccorso Alpino e Speleologico/Reuters)

The helicopter took off from Lucca in Tuscany on Thursday, and was due to make the hour-long journey to the northern city of Treviso when it disappeared from radar screens after hitting bad weather above a hilly, wooded area.

Prosecutors have cordoned off the area where the remains of the helicopter were found, as part of the investigation into the incident.

A tweet was posted on the Twitter account of the Italian air force, saying: “We got the coordinates, we went to the site and found everything burnt. The helicopter is basically inside a valley, near a stream.”

The Turkish businessmen aboard the aircraft were working for Eczacibasi Consumer Products, a subsidiary of the major Turkish industrial group Eczacibasi. They had been attending a paper technologies fair in Italy, the company said in a statement.

The helicopter was an AW119 Koala, manufactured by defence group Leonardo, a person close to the matter said. It is reported to have been owned by transport and aeronautical maintenance company Avio Helicopters, based in Thiene, in northern Italy.

Avio Helicopters was not immediately available for comment.

Additional reporting by Reuters