The wreckage of the Hungarian aircraft that crashed in the Dalmatian hinterland is being recovered, the Croatian defence ministry stated on Friday adding about 70 army service-people are engaged in the ongoing investigation and efforts to pull out the wreck from the rugged terrain.

An on-site investigation by Hungarian and Croatian authorities into the circumstances of the crash is still ongoing, the Hungarian defence ministry said on Thursday.

“Debris from the helicopter will be collected and transported to Hungary for further analysis. The remains of the three crew members will be taken to Split,” the Hungarian MTI news agency reported yesterday. The ministry also said that Gabor Borondi, the chief of staff of the Hungarian Armed Forces, had been briefed on the investigation at the scene in person and met the Hungarian troops taking part in the exercise.

The Croatian ministry reported today that apart from the army troops, also firefighters and civil protection members are on the ground.

The Hungarian Airbus H145M was training at the Multinational Special Aviation Programme Training Center at Colonel Mirko Vukusic barracks. It crashed near Drnis, Sibenik-Knin County around noon on Wednesday while returning from a mission to Zemunik air base.

All three crew members were killed. The bodies of two were found immediately after the accident, while the body of the third victim was found under the wreckage on Thursday.