Military EC135P Helicopter Crashes into River in Germany: Fatalities Reported

A German Air Force Eurocopter EC135 P2+ helicopter has crashed, resulting in the deaths of all crew members on board.

According to Spiegel, the accident occurred on July 29, 2025, near the town of Grimma, when the helicopter lost control and plunged into the Mulde River.

At the time of the crash, there were three crew members on board from the 64th Helicopter Wing, based at Holzdorf Air Base.

The helicopter was being used for training flights and, during its final mission, was operating under the call sign “Stallion 82” with the flight designation STLON82.

The aircraft was officially reported missing between 10:00 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. local time, and the wreckage was discovered around noon. The bodies of all three crew members were recovered from the river.

It is worth noting that this is the first crash involving a Bundeswehr EC135 helicopter in the past 20 years, as well as the first fatal accident involving German military personnel on this helicopter model.

According to Major General Holger Neumann, the crew operating the helicopter was experienced. At the same time, the cause of the tragedy is to be determined by a special investigation commission.

Militarnyi previously reported that a T-4 training aircraft belonging to the Japan Air Self-Defense Force crashed after takeoff.

According to the Japanese Ministry of Defense, the T-4 training aircraft lost contact with the base immediately after takeoff on May 14, at around 3:00 p.m. local time.

At the time of takeoff from Komaki Air Base, there were two crew members on board the aircraft. Both were later found dead. The aircraft involved in the crash was a Kawasaki T-4 training jet with tail number “96-5625” and serial number “1025,” assigned to the 305th Tactical Fighter Squadron.

Despite being in intensive use, accidents involving this type of aircraft are extremely rare. The last known crash occurred on July 4, 2000, when two T-4 jets collided mid-air during training flights, resulting in the deaths of three pilots.