Seven killed in Venezuelan army helicopter crash

CARACAS, Venezuela, Mar 2 (Reuters) Seven people died when a Venezuelan military helicopter crashed near the frontier with Colombia, authorities said today.

Five Venezuelan soldiers and two civilians were killed when their helicopter went down in a southern Amazon region, Venezuela's INAC aviation authority said. One person survived.

INAC did not say what caused the crash and a Defense Ministry spokeswoman had no details. Authorities said they lost contact with the helicopter late yesterday.

The aircraft was flying between southern Apure state and Puerto Ayacucho city in Amazonas state.

REUTERS DH RAI0131