A Royal Navy serviceperson has died in a helicopter disaster in the Channel during a routine training drill. 

The incident involved a Merlin Mk4 helicopter ditched into the sea while conducting night flying exercises with aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth near Dorset.

There were reportedly three crew members on board the helicopter at the time, two of which were rescued with the help of HM Coastguard and taken to hospital, according to the BBC. 

They did not suffer any serious injuries and there were no other fatalities. The family of the deceased, who has not been named, have been informed.

A second Merlin helicopter was taking part in the same exercise and was also in the air at the time of the tragedy, the BBC added. 

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said he was ‘deeply saddened’ by the incident and paid tribute to HMS Queen Elizabeth’s crew. 

He wrote on X: ‘Deeply saddened to hear of the tragic death of a member of the Royal Navy. 

‘My thoughts are with the family and loved ones during this painful time. 

‘I pay tribute to ship’s company, particularly those involved in the search and rescue operation.’

On a visit to Portsmouth, Defence Secretary John Healey said: ‘Dreadful news. Truly dreadful news.

‘All my thoughts and the thoughts of those in the wider navy I’ve been with today are with the family, the friends and the close colleagues of the one we’ve lost today.’

First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff, Admiral Sir Ben Key, said in a statement on X: ‘I am intensely saddened by the tragic loss of one of our Royal Navy personnel, following the incident in the English Channel last night.

‘It is a huge shock to us all in the Naval Community, and our thoughts and condolences go out to the family at this time.’

A Royal Navy spokesperson said: ‘It is with great sadness that we must report a member of the Royal Navy has died following a training incident last night.

‘Our thoughts are with the family – who have been informed – and all those affected at this sad time. A full investigation will take place.’ 

HMS Queen Elizabeth is described on the Navy’s website as ‘the largest and most powerful vessel ever constructed for the Royal Navy’ which is capable of carrying up to 40 aircraft. 

The vessel had been docked at Portsmouth Harbour until Monday when it headed back out to sea for ‘a busy period of equipment trials and training’, the vessel’s account on X wrote. 

The 65,000-tonne warship is one of two Queen Elizabeth-class carriers built for the Royal Navy. Its sister ship, HMS Prince of Wales departed Portsmouth on Sunday. 

The mammoth warships are the size of four football pitches and can accommodate 1,600 sailors and aircrew. 

The Merlin MK 4 is one of the most advanced helicopters in the navy’s Fleet Air Arm, with HMS Queen Elizabeth capable of carrying four of the aircraft alongside an embarked squadron of up to 36 F-35B stealth jets.  

It can be used to fly special forces troops and Royal Marine Commandos into combat, while the Merlin Mk2 is principally used as a submarine hunter.

Capable of flying at speeds of almost 200mph, the helicopters have a range of 750 nautical miles and can lift 3.8 tonnes – more than the weight of a large transit van. 

Military helicopter crashes are rare, with crews on aircraft carriers routinely carrying out drills to prepare for such an incident. 

In March 2003, six British personnel and one American were killed when two Royal Navy Sea King Mk 7 Airborne Early Warning helicopters collided over the northern Arabian Gulf. 

The helicopters were from 849 Squadron A Flight, which is based at the Royal Naval Air Station Culdrose, in Cornwall. 

In May 1982, twenty SAS troopers were killed when a Sea King helicopter crammed with troops and equipment plunged into the South Atlantic during the Falklands war.

The accident is said to have been caused by a bird hitting an engine mid-flight. 

Only nine people made escape the crash, with survivors having to cling to a lift raft in freezing, rough seas before they could be reached by rescuers.

Wednesday’s helicopter disaster is the latest nightmare incident to rock the ‘cursed’ HMS Queen Elizabeth. 

The bedevilled warship was recently forced to spend months in dry dock following a fault with her propeller shaft. 

The issue, spotted in March, was similar to the defect that went on to cripple Queen Elizabeth’s younger sister, HMS Prince of Wales, leaving that ship out of action for almost a year and the Senior Service with a multi-million-pound repair bill.

While the Queen Elizabeth was docked at Glenmallan, by Loch Long in Scotland, a fire broke out inside the 932ft-long leviathan which ‘ripped through’ the carrier and destroyed 100 beds, leaving 10 sailors in need of medical treatment.

The vessel – the pride of the Royal Navy and flagship of the fleet – departed the dock in July after work to fix the fire damage and repair her propeller was completed.