Russian military helicopter crashes during airshow stunt

A Russian military pilot is dead and another lucky to be alive after an attack helicopter crashed during an aerobatic display.

The Mi-28N helicopter was performing in formation at the Aviamax airshow in Ryazan yesterday when it started to bank on one side and lost altitude, RT.com reports.

Video from the scene shows the state-of-the-art chopper enter into a spin and crash land hard into the ground not far from the airfield before erupting into flames.

The co-pilot managed to free himself from the wreckage and walked away from it, but the chief pilot died on impact.

"According to preliminary reports of the hospitalised pilot of (the) Mi28N, when performing an aerobatic stunt, the emergency alert system of the helicopter reported the failure of the hydraulic boost system," the Russian Defence Ministry's press service said in a statement.

The fire was eventually extinguished but the helicopter was destroyed.

The Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Air Force, Viktor Bondarev, said he has ordered the grounding of the entire Mi-28N and and that an investigation will take place.

"The commission under my leadership is working to clarify the causes of the disaster," Bondarev said in a statement.