A private helicopter crashed during takeoff at the Athens Eleftherios Venizelos airfield.
The aircraft caught fire after the fall, but the pilot escaped unscathed.
The helicopter was based at the Airport in the general area where private flights are operated from.
A private company owns it, and the pilot was the only one on board. He was heading to his destination to pick up passengers.
It is unknown what exactly happened; the helicopter had only risen about 2-3 meters above the ground when it had a mechanical failure and crashed. Once on the ground, the aircraft broke into two parts and caught fire.
The response of the Eleftherios Venizelos airport fire department was immediate and firefighters quickly extinguished the fire.