A Ukrainian Mi-8 helicopter crashed into the Black Sea on Monday, killing 19 people on board, and the lone survivor was seriously injured.

The crash happened when the helicopter's tail struck part of an offshore platform operated by the Ukrainian state oil and gas company Blackseanaftogaz, to which the aircraft belonged, the Interfax-Ukraine news agency quoted company spokesman Yuri Avdeev as saying.

Avdeev said the helicopter was carrying 20 people, including 3 crew members and 17 workers. "Nineteen have been found dead, and one person survived," he said.

Authorities were investigating the cause of the crash, Ukrainian Transport and Communications Minister Yosyp Vinsky told reporters in Kiev.

"We have set up a governmental inquiry commission to investigate the cause of the accident," Vinsky said.

On March 27, a Ukrainian Mi-8 helicopter belonging to Ukraine's border guards crashed into the Black Sea, killing 12 people on board, and one person survived the accident.

(Xinhua News Agency April 29, 2008)