A Russian helicopter has crashed in Siberia killing 18 oil workers

A Russian airline helicopter has crashed shortly after take-off, killing all 18 people aboard. 

The UTair Airline which operated the Mi-8 helicopter, said in a statement preliminary information indicated the aircraft's blades collided with another helicopter that had taken off earlier today from the pad in Vankor.

They collided above the Arctic Circle about 2600 kilometres northeast of Moscow.

There were 15 passengers and three crew aboard.

Russian news reports said all the passengers were believed to have been working for a subsidiary of the state oil company Rosneft.