Royal Navy helicopter crashes into Devon field

A Royal Navy helicopter has crashed into a field in Devon, police have said.

Devon and Cornwall Police said that emergency services are at the scene of the incident at Sourton Down, near Okehampton.

"The incident is ongoing, and we will share more updates as we have them," a spokesperson for the force added.

"The Ministry of Defence have confirmed it was a Royal Navy helicopter."

The Royal Navy said the crash happened just before 4am on Wednesday. "An investigation is underway, and it would be inappropriate to comment further at this time," a spokesperson added.

Several road closures are in place around the A386 and A30 Sourton Cross area.

According to Traffic England, disruption was expected on the A30 eastbound exit slip to the A386 until around 12.30pm.

The Royal Navy's two air bases are located close to Devon: RNAS Culdrose, one of Europe's largest helicopter bases, is located near Helston in Cornwall, while RNAS Yeovilton in Somerset houses more than 100 aircraft.

The scene of the crash is close to Okehampton battle camp, a military facility on the edge of Dartmoor which has been used for training Merlin helicopter crews from the Commando Helicopter Force.

Speaking about the incident at Prime Minister's Questions, Sir Keir Starmer said he was aware of the incident and added: "This will be a deeply worrying time for the families and more information will be set out as soon as possible."

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