Helicopter with Turkish employees on board missing in Italy

Turkish industrial group Eczacibasi on Friday confirmed that a helicopter with seven people on board, including four Turkish citizens had gone missing in northern Italy.

The Turkish foreign ministry also confirmed the incident, noting the search and rescue efforts for the helicopter continued.

A team from the company, including an Italian pilot, took off from the Iralian city of Lucca and headed for Treviso on Thursday morning but disappeared near the Modena region, said a statement by Eczacibasi.

The Turkish employees were in Italy to attend a paper technologies fair organized by Tissue Italy Network, the statement added.

The communication with the helicopter, an Agusta Koala “AW119” type, was cut off about 30 minutes after its takeoff, according to the Italian ANSA news agency.

Reported by Xinhua/NAN