Arequipa: Fifteen people were killed when a military helicopter that went missing on Sunday crashed in the Arequipa region of southern Peru, the Air Force announced on Monday.

According to National Iraqi News Agency, the Air Force issued a statement revealing that special forces and police patrols, after intensifying search operations, located the Mi-17 helicopter, which had lost radio contact on Sunday afternoon. The statement further confirmed the deaths of the four crew members, along with the eleven passengers on board, noting that seven of them were under the age of eighteen.

The helicopter was reported missing after taking off from Pisco in the Ica region, heading towards Chala in the Arequipa region, approximately 1,100 kilometers south of the capital, Lima. Rescuers discovered the helicopter wreckage in the Chala area.