Three people have been killed and five injured after a Black Hawk helicopter crashed during a Taliban training exercise in Afghanistan. The chopper crashed in Kabul due to a 'technical problem,' the group's defence ministry said on Saturday.
"An American Black Hawk helicopter, which was flown ... for training, crashed due to a technical problem inside the campus of the National Defence University," said Ministry of Defence spokesperson Enaytullah Khowrazmi, adding five people were also injured. The deceased included two pilots and one crew member.
Video footage of the crash shows the helicopter seemingly nose-dive before crashing into the ground. Moments later, a cloud of smoke is seen billowing out of the crash site. Watch the video below:
Another clip showing the aircraft moments before its crash, appeared to show the pilot performing "dangerous maneuvers" before crashing:
Taliban Seized Control of the American-Made Aircrafts Last Year
The Taliban took control of some American-made aircraft after they seized the country in mid-August last year. American troops destroyed more than 70 aircrafts and dozens of armoured vehicles and disabled air defences before flying out of Kabul's airport following a chaotic evacuation operation.
Some of the aircrafts were flown into neighbouring Central Asian countries by fleeing Afghan forces a year ago, but the Taliban inherited left-over aircraft.
It remains unclear how many are operational but Khowarazmi told Reuters last month that the Taliban had recently repaired some helicopters and were conducting the flyovers as a test. He did not confirm the exact make or country of origin, saying only that "all types of aircraft" were being tested.
It was not clear who had provided the technical expertise to repair the helicopters. Taliban officials have said that pilots, mechanics and other specialists from the former Afghan National Army would be integrated into their security forces.
