UPDATE: The pilot, 58-year-old Richard Chan from Hong Kong, has died after failing to regain consciousness, according to Perak police chief Datuk Mohd Yusri Hassan Basri.
The pilot of a Eurocopter EC120B helicopter has been found, said Transport Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong.
In a Facebook post, he said that the CAAM (Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia) confirmed the incident.
Thank God. I just received confirmation from CAAM (Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia) that the pilot from yesterday’s helicopter incident has been found alive at the crash site.
“The site was detected at 8:20am near Bidor. We thank TUDM, PDRM, the Fire and Rescue Services Department for their quick support and assistance in making this rescue with their aircraft and drone teams during the SAR operation,” he wrote.
Wee also added that rescuers are currently working on sending the pilot to the Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital in Ipoh for further treatment.
Helicopter missing since yesterday
According to New Straits Times, CAAM chief executive officer Datuk Captain Chester Voo confirmed that the helicopter went off the radar after losing contact with Kuala Lumpur Air Traffic Control Centre (KLATCC) at 12.16pm yesterday.
The vehicle which had a single pilot in it took off from the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Subang at 11.37am for a private flight and was scheduled to land at 12.37pm at the Sultan Azlan Shah Airport in Bidor, Perak.
Upon losing contact with the helicopter, the Kuala Lumpur Aeronautical Rescue Coordination Centre in KLATCC was immediately launched to track its location.
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