Missing Cambodian military chopper found: defense spokesperson

A Cambodian military helicopter, that went missing on July 12, was found in the Cardamom Mountains on Monday, a spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense said.

"After a 17-day search operation, our search team found the missing helicopter in the Cardamom Mountains on July 29, 2024," Gen. Chhum Socheat, a secretary of state and spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense, announced the discovery in a post on social media.

"The helicopter was spotted from the air at the Yav Yai Mountain in Thmor Da commune of Pursat province's Veal Veng district after the weather improved. Our ground forces are heading to the crashed site," he added.

Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Gen. Tea Seiha has said that the chopper had gone missing with two people on board -- a pilot and an assistant.

"The helicopter was flying during a training mission and had got into difficulties due to acute bad weather," he said.

The helicopter had lost contact with the air force headquarters while flying over the densely forested Cardamon Mountain range in Pursat and Koh Kong provinces during a training flight on July 12 due to bad weather, according to the Ministry of National Defense.