Rome holds funerals for four killed in Italian helicopter crash in Bosnia

An Italian military helicopter crashed on the afternoon of October 29 in Gorice, in the municipality of Brcko in northern Bosnia and Herzegovina, according to Panorama. The outlet identified the aircraft as a CH-47 Chinook.

The helicopter was operating as part of the European Union's Operation Althea, Euronews reported. La Repubblica described the flight as a training exercise. Four Italian military personnel died.

Initial reports on October 29 differed over the toll. The Independent reported three deaths, while nu.nl reported four deaths and twelve injuries. ANSA subsequently reported four dead and eleven injured, the figures also given by Il Post on October 30.

The four victims were Laura Procacci, Simone Ruggia, Claudio Marchesi and Franco Adriano Zecchillo, according to TGcom24. Two belonged to the Italian army and two to the Red Cross.

On October 30, Il Post reported that the crash happened shortly after takeoff, but that its cause remained unknown. ANSA reported that military prosecutors had opened an investigation and that a Defence commission was at the scene.

By October 31, two investigations were under way. According to TGcom24, military prosecutors were examining negligent loss of the aircraft, while civilian prosecutors were investigating disaster and negligent homicide. Both cases were against persons unknown.

On November 1, Fanpage reported testimony from Lieutenant Colonel doctor Flavio Favari, the only survivor of the Red Cross medical team aboard the helicopter. Adnkronos reported that he was being treated for fractures in a hospital in Tuzla.

The victims' bodies arrived at Rome's Ciampino airport on November 2 aboard a C130 military aircraft, Adnkronos reported. Their families, President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella and Premier Giorgia Meloni were among those there to receive them.

Funerals for the four victims took place in Rome on November 3, with President Mattarella and Premier Meloni among the officials present, according to ANSA. Adnkronos reported that fellow service members carried the flag-covered coffins into the Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri.

The cause remains unresolved in the supplied coverage. TGcom24 reported on October 30 that weather had been ruled out and described a technical malfunction as almost certain, but that report did not establish a final finding.

The central unanswered question is what caused the helicopter to crash shortly after takeoff. The military and civilian investigations reported by TGcom24, alongside the Defence commission reported by ANSA, are the next sources of findings on the sequence of events and any responsibility.