A fire-fighting helicopter crashed Thursday in north Corsica in France, killing the two pilots on board, announced a statement jointly published by two prefectures of the island.

The US-made helicopter "air-crane" chartered by the French Interior Ministry from the French transport company Helipaca was used to fight a fire in Corsica.

The crash was reported at 08:48 local time (0648 GMT), and the two pilots, one Canadian and one French, didn't survive the accident, said the statement.

French Interior Minister Dominique de Villepin extended his condolences to the family of the two victims and asked immediately the accident investigation office of civil aviation to launch an inquiry to determine the cause of the accident, said the Interior Ministry in a statement.

Source: Xinhua