The formula used in these cases is the formal one: “Assessments in progress”. Cold words that push the pain of broken lives into a corner and point to a clear analysis of the facts. This is what is being done at the top of the Defense: to understand why an Italian Army helicopter crashed in Bosnia causing the death of sergeants Simone Ruggia and Claudio Marchesi and of Laura Procacci and Franco Adriano Zecchillo, sergeant-nurse and lieutenant-doctor of the Red Cross respectively. We have the technical notes of the medium and clips of amateur videos are circulating. From here we start to reconstruct what happened. Let’s take stock.
The images
We know that the helicopter was a CH 47. It is a massive vehicle built by Boeing in the early 1960s and used extensively in the Vietnam War by the American armed forces but is still used by many countries for its high load capacity: it can carry up to 50 people.
He left from Viterbo, after a stopover at the military airport of Pratica di Mare he reached Bosnia for a training operation. On board there were fifteen Italians (4 victims and 11 wounded) engaged in the European mission Eufor Althea. The accident occurred during take-off from Brčko airport.
Some videos are circulating on X and Telegram. They are amateur and capture the takeoff and crash. The helicopter is seen rising from a pad for about thirty metres, then it seems to lose power and there is a spin. Then the impact, on my side. All in a matter of seconds.
29.10.2026 Northeast Bosnia Near Brčko Italian Chinook 4 death, 11 injured soldiers https://t.co/JxlbqXdIxH
— bosniakdiver⚜ (@bosniakdiver) October 29, 2026
The causes
Technical investigations will clarify what happened. Military investigators from the Army and the Eufor Althea mission will analyze the remains of the cabin, the electronic control units that survived the impact and will collect testimonies to clarify the dynamics.
However, some considerations can be made. A weather-related problem is ruled out. The images circulating show a barely cloudy sky. Among the hypotheses is that of a possible collision with high voltage cables, but a structural failure or mechanical failure of the engines that would have made the vehicle ungovernable cannot be ruled out.
Who are the victims
Sergeant Simone Ruggia was the pilot, he was 30 years old and originally from Salerno. Claudio Marchesi was 35 years old and originally from Orvieto. Also with the rank of sergeant, he was the on-board specialist. Both were stationed at the first “Antares” regiment of the training center. Laura Procacci, sergeant and nurse of the Red Cross, was 24 years old. She was the first female non-commissioned officer from Andria to be sworn into the Cri military corps. Lieutenant Franco Adriano Zecchillo, also from the Cri, would have turned 65 on 31 October. He was a doctor expert in cardiovascular pathophysiology and cardiovascular perfusion.
Simone, Claudio, Franco Adriano, Laura. Four lives broken while serving Italy. Today my thoughts are with them and those who love them.
Together with Minister Guido Crosetto, I placed a bouquet of roses at the Circus Maximus to pay homage to our four soldiers who lost their lives in Bosnia.
We wanted the Defense Village, set up in view of November 4, to become a place of reflection open to all. A place where every Italian can bring a flower, leave a thought, stop in silence. And make the families of our fallen feel the closeness of an entire nation.
I know that no words can fill such a great absence. But being there is a duty. Be close to those who suffer, cherish the memory of those we have lost, accompany the wounded and their loved ones in these difficult hours.
To those who want to come to the Circus Maximus, I ask for a simple gesture: bring a flower. In that flower there will be your affection, your respect, Italy’s thanks.
Simone, Claudio, Franco Adriano, Laura: we will not forget you.
— Giorgia Meloni (@GiorgiaMeloni) October 30, 2026