Bodies of Venezuelan Air Force Head, Top Officers Recovered From Crash Site

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Monday, April 22, 2002

Bodies of Venezuelan Air Force Head, Top Officers Recovered From Crash Site

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Rescuers Saturday recovered the bodies of Venezuelan Air Force commander General Luis Acevedo and nine others killed when their helicopter slammed into a mountainside in bad weather, armed forces commander General Lucas Rincon said.

Acevedo -- appointed just days ago by reinstated President Hugo Chavez -- was killed along with generals Pedro Torres Finol, Julio Ochoa and Rafael Quintana, all members of the air force high command, recently reorganized after a military coup.

A captain, three lieutenants and two aviation technicians aboard the helicopter also died in the crash, Rincon said.

The crash occurred as the Super Puma helicopter took off with two others after a military ceremony at the country's naval school, some 30 kilometers (18 miles) northeast of Caracas, in which Vice Admiral Fernando Camejo officially took his oath as the new head of the Venezuelan Navy.

The helicopter slammed into a mountainside after becoming trapped in bad weather as it approached Caracas, said Rincon, who was traveling on another helicopter.

"The information that I have indicates that it was not sabotage" that caused the accident, but rather "bad weather," Rincon told the state-run Venezolana de Television network.

Rincon's helicopter had similar problems but managed to land safely, though the passengers were shaken, he said.

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