DUBAI, May 19 (Reuters) - A helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and his foreign minister crashed on Sunday as it was crossing mountain terrain in heavy fog, an Iranian official told Reuters, and rescuers were struggling to reach the site of the incident.
The official said the lives of Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian were "at risk following the helicopter crash", which happened on the way back from a visit to the border with Azerbaijan in Iran's northwest.
The Israeli government isn't exactly known for their subtly... UNLESS.... They've deliberately been shit at hiding it before so this time everyone would assume it couldn't have been them....Netanyahu is a stable genius playing 4D chess...!
Not just rugged, but mountain terrain. Having to go high means thinner air and less lift. Coupled with the fog, I think they might have put themselves in quite a precarious situation.
Their helicopters are also generally old and with scarce replacement parts due to sanctions. Mechanical failure could easily be the case if not the terrain.
It’s the same story. I believe the first official Iranian statement had language like “involved in a hard landing” without anything else.
They have since turned to asking for prayers for their safe recovery, and apparently asked the EU for satellite imaging to help with search and rescue. [this is from a New York Times timeline that I recently read.]
I'm not familiar with the story you're referring to, but typically a hard landing doesn't necessitate a search/rescue team. Unless it's a very hard "landing" into the side of a mountain, for example.