MilitaryForums.co.uk

Fourteen British service personnel have died after their aircraft crashed in Afghanistan, the MoD has said.

Twelve RAF personnel, a Royal Marine and an Army soldier were among those who died in the crash in the southern province of Kandahar.

The aircraft belonged to NATO-led international force against the Taleban.

An International Security Assistance Force spokesman said "enemy action had been discounted at this stage".

Earlier, NATO said its forces had launched a major offensive against known hideouts of Taleban insurgents in the Panjwayi district of Kandahar, with the aim of driving them out of the area.

There was no indication of an enemy attack on the plane, which was not a fighter jet, Maj Scott Lundy said.


MoD Helpline
A special helpline is available on 08457 800 900 for families concerned about relatives
The crash came as Afghan and Nato troops began a major anti-Taleban drive in the Panjwayi district of Kandahar which has seen months of fighting.

Afghanistan is experiencing its bloodiest period since the fall of the Taleban in 2001. Much of the fighting has been concentrated in the south.

The plane came down about 20 km (12 miles) west of the city of Kandahar, Maj Lundy of the International Security Assistance Force (Isaf) said.

It was "supporting a Nato mission. It went off the radar and crashed in an open area in Kandahar."

Nato forces are at the scene but there is no word on how many people were on board. A large Canadian contingent is based in Kandahar province.

A local tribal elder told the Associated Press news agency by phone that the wreckage of the plane was burning in an open field.

"I can see three or four helicopters in the sky, and coalition forces are also arriving in the area," he said.

On Thursday, a Dutch F-16 fighter pilot was killed after his plane crashed in the southern province of Ghazni.

Officials said the crash was believed to be an accident.