NEW DELHI: Two crew members were missing on Tuesday after an Indian naval helicopter crashed into the sea off the country's southeastern coast sparking an air-sea rescue search, a navy spokesman said.
The Russian-designed helicopter took off from the city of Visakhapatnam and lost contact after flying 18 kilometres (11 miles) from its base, Commander D.K. Sharma told AFP in New Delhi.
"We have rescued two of the crew and are looking for the remaining two in the sea," Sharma said.
The Chetak helicopter lost contact with authorities mid-afternoon.
"Ships and aircraft have joined the search," the official said.
Last August nine Indian air force personnel died after two Russian-designed military helicopters collided in mid-air over a firing range in the western state of Gujarat.
India plans to buy as many as 400 helicopters, worth hundreds of millions of dollars, to replace its ageing fleet of Russian- and British-supplied aircraft.
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