A Federal Security Service (FSB) helicopter has crashed in Russia’s Ural Mountains, killing all three crew members on board, authorities and state media reported Thursday.

“An Mi-8 helicopter crashed in a forest during a routine flight near the village of Prudny in the Sosnovsky district [of Russia’s Chelyabinsk region],” an anonymous emergency services representative told the RIA Novosti news agency.

The cause of the deadly air disaster is believed to be a "technical malfunction," the news agency reported.

The Mil Mi-8 transport helicopter belonged to the FSB’s fleet of aircraft, Chelyabinsk region Governor Alexei Teksler said on the Telegram messaging app.

There were no casualties among residents near the crash site, Teksler added.

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