1 dead, 1 injured in Beijing helicopter crash

BEIJING - One pilot has died and another was injured following a helicopter crash at Miyun county in suburban Beijing on Thursday morning, according to rescue authorities.

At 11:39 am Thursday, Beijing emergency center received a report that the helicopter had crashed near Mujiayu township of Miyun county, said the center on its account at Weibo, a Twitter-style social networking service.

The center dispatched an ambulance helicopter to the site and sent the two injured pilots to the county hospital.

A 38-year-old pilot had slight injuries to his hands. The other pilot was diagnosed with brain injury and died after failing to respond to emergency treatment.

As of 7 pm Thursday, the injured pilot was in stable condition.

The Bell 407 helicopter belongs to a Beijing-based company. It was operated by a general aviation company in neighboring Tianjin.

The accident occurred while the pilots were conducting flight training above Mujiayu township in Miyun.

Civil aviation authorities are investigating the accident.

The State Council, China's cabinet, and the military authority jointly decided in November 2010 to open up the country's low-altitude airspace to general aviation.