LOP BURI: A helicopter on a training flight from the Army Aviation Centre in Lop Buri crashed and burst into flames on Tuesday morning, killing the two crew, a military source said.
The source said the helicopter, manufactured by Enstrom Helicopter Corporation in the United States, crashed about 9.40am beside a post office in front of Jiraprawat army camp, in Muang district of Nakhon Sawan province.
Lt Col Panpong Banchongplian, a flying instructor, and Cpl Chanakorn Piamcharoen, an aviation student, were killed in the crash.
The helicopter crashed while on a training flight with other helicopters.
The army bought 22 Enstrom 480B helicopters from Enstrom Helicopter Corporation in two batches - the first 16 in 2011 and the second six in 2019.
The crashed helicopter reportedly cost 74 million baht.
They are used for training at the Army Aviation Centre in Lop Buri.
A rescue worker stands near the wreckage of the helicopter that crashed near the wall of a post office in Nakhon Sawan. (Photo: Chalit Phumruang)