Turkey military helicopter crashes in residential area of Istanbul

Four die and another taken to hospital

Four Turkish soldiers have died after a military plane crashed in a residential area of Istanbul, local media have reported.

Another soldier on board was taken to hospital after the crash, which happened between two blocks of flats in the city’s Sancaktepe neighbourhood.

Anadolu Agency said the aircraft which was on a training mission, hit the roof of a building.

The helicopter then fell to the ground and split into two.

Footage showed debris from the crash scattered across the road.

The cause of the accident was not immediately clear.

No-one else was hurt in the crash.

Sancaktepe is on the Asian side of the city, which straddles two continents.

The helicopter was returning to Samandira air base, near Sancaktepe, and may have tried to land on an empty plot of land after experiencing a technical fault, private NTV television reported.

Associated Press contributed to this report