Norway: Chopper crew didn’t report problems before crash

COPENHAGEN – Norwegian authorities say a cockpit voice recorder from a Russian helicopter that crashed in the Arctic with eight people onboard did not capture the crew discussing any technical problems before the aircraft hit the sea.

Norway’s Accident Investigation Board says the crew “apparently did not identify any technical abnormalities” that would help explain the cause of the Oct. 26 crash. The board says more investigation is needed.

The agency said in a report published Friday that life jackets were found on the seabed and it thinks the Mi-8 helicopter was evacuated before it sank.

The fuselage was located at a depth of nearly 210 metres (685 feet) and raised. Only one body has been recovered so far.

Three members of Russia’s Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute were with five crew members when the helicopter went down off Norway’s Svalbard archipelago.