A young British couple and their Greek pilot were killed Monday when a private helicopter crashed on the Greek island of Sifnos, police said.
The victims were identified as Alexander Cromie and Marie Ebert, who were reportedly on their honeymoon, along with the Greek pilot.
The helicopter crashed just meters from a landing area, killing all three people on board. According to local reports, the couple had chartered the helicopter from Markopoulo, near Athens, to travel to the popular tourist island.
The crash occurred shortly before the helicopter was scheduled to land at around 6:15 p.m. local time, according to a senior police official.
Authorities have launched an investigation into the cause of the accident. Emergency services and local residents worked at the scene to extinguish a fire that broke out following the crash.
Sifnos Deputy Mayor Manolis Foundoulakis arrived at the scene shortly after the accident and said there was “almost nothing left” of the helicopter.
He said local residents saw the aircraft crash only a few meters from nearby homes and reported hearing an unusual engine noise as it approached the landing area.
According to Foundoulakis, two of the victims were found inside the wreckage, while the third was located a short distance away.
Firefighters brought the blaze under control by Monday evening as investigators began examining the crash site.
The incident has prompted an investigation by Greek authorities to determine what caused the helicopter to go down moments before its planned landing.
