A military helicopter crashed off the coast of northern Israel on Monday night, officials said.
One of the three crew members was recovered and taken to Haifa’s Rambam Medical Center for treatment with moderate injuries. The hospital said he was being treated in its shock ward and would then be moved to its intensive care unit for further care.
Search-and-rescue teams from the Israel Defense Forces’ Unit 669 pulled the other two crew members from the water, but their conditions were not immediately known.
Rescuers had attempted to reach them quickly, as they were at risk of hypothermia in the frigid waters.
The cause of the crash was not immediately known, but it appeared to be the result of a technical malfunction, not an attack.
The Israeli Air Force helicopter went down just off the coast of the port city of Haifa.
Video footage taken just after the crash, which was quickly shared on social media, showed flaming wreckage not far off the coast.
Additional videos showed that flares were launched over the area to assist search-and-rescue teams.
The helicopter that crashed was a Eurocopter AS565 Panther, known by the IAF as an “Atalef,” or bat. The aircraft is used primarily for missions at sea as it is capable of landing on Israeli Navy missile ships, specifically Sa’ar-5 class models.
Fragments of the helicopter began washing onto shore soon after the crash.
התרסקות המסוק בחיפה: חלקי מסוק שנפלטו לחוף
(אורלי אלקלעי) pic.twitter.com/U0W9q98u8n— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) January 3, 2022
According to the military, the helicopter was taking part in a training exercise when it went down.