2 men killed in helicopter crash in Gunma

Two men were killed when their helicopter crashed Sunday on a hillside near a highway in Gunma Prefecture, police said.

"One was confirmed dead at the site while the other was sent to hospital before his death was confirmed," a spokesman for the police in Gunma told AFP, declining to give more details.

Police and fire department officials rushed to the crash site in Annaka after receiving an emergency call, fire department officials told AFP.

The privately-owned two-seat Robinson R22 helicopter had taken off from a Tokyo heliport Sunday morning for Komoro in Nagano Prefecture, Jiji Press and public broadcaster NHK reported, citing sources from the police and transport ministry.

© (c) 2015 AFP