HELSINKI (AP) — Norwegian rescue officials say the wreckage of a Russian helicopter that crashed with eight people onboard off the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard has been located on the seabed.
The Joint Rescue Coordination Center for northern Norway said Sunday that the Mi-8 helicopter, which went down Thursday near the Svalbard settlement of Barentsburg, is around two kilometers (one mile) east of Cape Heer at a depth of 210 meters (685 feet).
A remote-controlled submarine was involved in the search, which will now focus on the chopper’s passengers.
The helicopter had been en route to Barentsburg from the Russian settlement of Pyramiden, carrying five crew members and three staff members from Russia’s Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute.
Norway has sovereignty over Svalbard, which is 800 kilometers (500 miles) north of its mainland.
