ROME: Five US military personnel were killed on Thursday when a US army helicopter crashed in northern Italy, a spokesman at Aviano air base said. The Blackhawk UH-60 with 11 people aboard crashed some 35 kms south of Aviano, Senior Airman Justin Weaver confirmed to AFP, quoting a statement from the US army’s European headquaters in Heidelberg, Germany.

The helicopter attached to the 214th Aviation Regiment crashed at around noon (1100 GMT), it said.

The cause of the accident was unknown.

Firefighters earlier said the helicopter caught fire after the crash and they extinguished the blaze.

The crash happened some 200 metres from an overpass on a highway, which was closed to traffic, near the town of Santa Lucia di Piave, the Italian news agency ANSA said earlier.

An American F-16 fighter crashed last month in northern Italy but no one was hurt and no damage was caused by that accident.—AFP