In a video released on Telegram on Saturday, Kamchatka Governor Vladimir Solodov stated that they lost contact with a Mi-8 helicopter at 04:15 GMT, “which had 22 people on board – 19 passengers and three crew members.”
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Rescue teams in helicopters were searching into the night for the missing aircraft, focusing on a river valley that the helicopter was due to fly along, Russian authorities said.
The Mi-8 is a two-engine helicopter designed in the 1960s. It is widely used in Russia, where crashes have been frequent, as well as in neighbouring countries and many other nations.
In a picturesque region of the peninsula renowned for its untamed scenery and active volcanoes, the helicopter had picked up passengers close to the ancient volcano Vachkajec.
From there, it was traveling an additional 25 km (15.5 miles) to the village of Nikolayevka in the east, according to the authorities.
The crew did not report any issues, and almost immediately after takeoff the helicopter vanished from radar, an emergency services source told state news agency TASS.
