Two persons onboard Cambodian military chopper confirmed dead

Phnom Penh : A Cambodian military helicopter, that went missing on July 12, was found in the Cardamom Mountains, with both two people aboard confirmed dead, a defence spokesperson said on Tuesday.

"At 10:30 a.m. local on July 30, 2024, the search team of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces (RCAF) found the body of pilot Sun Phalla at the foot of the Yav Yai Mountain, about 210 meters from the crash site," Gen Chhum Socheat, a secretary of state and spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense, announced in a post on social media.

According to Socheat, the corpse of pilot assistant Kheng Chhaiyuth was discovered on Monday at around 5 p.m. local time in the crashed chopper, Xinhua news agency reported.

"I am shocked and saddened by the news of the deaths of the two pilots and pray for their souls to rest in peace," the spokesperson said.

The search team found the missing helicopter at the Yav Yai Mountain in Thmor Da commune of Pursat province's Veal Veng district on Monday afternoon after a 17-day search operation.

The helicopter had lost contact with the Air Force headquarters while flying over the densely forested Cardamom Mountain range in Pursat and Koh Kong provinces during a training flight on July 12 due to bad weather, according to the Ministry of National Defence.

Gen Ith Sarath, deputy commander-in-chief of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces (RCAF), who led the search and rescue operation, said more than 1,000 ground and air forces carried out the work.