An Irish man is among three people who died in a helicopter crash in the Swiss Alps on Tuesday morning, the Swiss Office of the Attorney General has confirmed.
The B3 helicopter crashed on the Petit Combin mountain as it was ferrying a guide and visitors to a drop-off point for skiers at around 9.25am (8.25am Irish time).
The Department of Foreign Affairs said it was aware of the incident and was ready to provide consular assistance.
In a statement, the local police said: "Arriving on the summit of this mountain culminating at an altitude of 3,668 meters, for a reason that the investigation will have to determine, the aircraft slipped down the northern slope."
The helicopter was carrying six people at the time of the incident including the pilot, a mountain guide and his four clients at the time of the crash, police said.
In a statement, the Swiss Office of the Attorney General said: "The people who died in the helicopter crash were the 34-year-old pilot with Swiss citizenship, the 45-year-old mountain guide with Swiss citizenship and a 34-year-old passenger with Irish citizenship."
Police said two others were injured and airlifted to hospital for treatment.
A third person was later rescued.
Rescue operations included seven helicopters that attended the site, according to the statement.
The Swiss Safety Investigation Service has opened a safety investigation to determine the cause of the incident.
The Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland (OAG), which is responsible for aviation accidents, is responsible for the criminal investigation in cooperation with Fedpol and the Valais Cantonal Police.
