KABUL: Three people died when a civilian helicopter contracted to NATO forces crashed in flames in Afghanistan's southern Helmand province on Monday, officials said.
The aircraft had "gone down due to mechanical problems", said Daud Ahmadi, a spokesman for the provincial government.
"Three people on board died as a civilian helicopter crashed in flames in Nad Ali district near Shora," a security official told AFP on condition of anonymity.
Afghan police had earlier reported that a "foreign troops' helicopter" had crashed, and Taliban insurgents claimed they had shot it down.
But a spokesman for NATO's International Security Assistance Force said the aircraft belonged to a civilian company, which he named as AAR Airlift, which is based in the United States.
Chris Mason, spokesman for AAR, confirmed it was one of his company's aircraft, working for the US Department of Defense, which had gone down and said the dead were all Americans.
The helicopter was transporting "personal supplies" when it crashed, Mason told AFP.
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