Rescue Helicopter Trying to Save Mountaineer Crashes

Dramatic footage shows a rescue helicopter crashing into Austria's highest mountain while trying to save a mountaineer having a heart attack. It showed the rescue helicopter spinning out of control before plummeting into Austria's highest mountain, the Grossglockner, just a few feet away from a sheer cliff.

The helicopter crew was on its way to a cabin near the summit, around 11,000ft above sea level, after receiving an emergency call about a mountaineer with heart problems.

The pilot, 36, alongside a paramedic and flight rescuer, both 53, made their way to the cabin despite the approaching darkness on Tuesday evening.

The rescue mission appears to be going successfully until the helicopter begins its take off with the patient on board.

The pilot later told how a massive wind gust pushed the helicopter off balance and sent it into a spin.

An eyewitness, who happened to be climbing the mountain at the time, filmed the terrifying scene from its peak. Amazingly, the pilot, flight rescuer and the patient were all unharmed in the crash - and the paramedic on board suffered only minor injuries.

If the helicopter crashed just a few feet away, it could have tumbled hundreds of feet down a steep cliff.

The mountaineer with the heart problem was flown away to hospital in a different chopper once the injured paramedic was taken to a local hospital.

Flight experts say that, at this altitude, the situation is entirely different than down in the valley due to the thin air. With sudden wind gusts, the air can quickly become unstable.