Summary: A helicopter operated by Saudi Aramco crashed on Sunday morning in Ras Tanura, on Saudi Arabia's eastern Gulf coast, killing 14 nationals. Authorities have launched a full investigation, and the cause of the crash remains unknown, the state news agency reported. The accident occurred shortly after Aramco resumed crude loadings at the Ras Tanura terminal.
The state news agency reported that a company helicopter went down at 6 a.m. local time (0300 GMT) in Ras Tanura, a coastal area on Saudi Arabia's Gulf shore west of the Strait of Hormuz. The agency said 14 nationals were killed in the crash and provided no further details about the circumstances or the victims.
According to the same report, the cause of the accident is not yet known. "The relevant authorities have launched a full investigation to determine the cause of the crash," the state news agency said. At the time of the report, Aramco had not immediately replied to an emailed request for comment.
Observers noted that the incident took place days after Aramco resumed crude oil loadings at its Ras Tanura terminal in the Gulf. The state news agency previously reported that those loadings had been halted for nearly four months and were restarted on the Friday before the crash.
Saudi Arabia, identified in the report as the world's biggest oil exporter, has been active in moving cargoes, the agency said. The country has joined a broader rush to dispatch shipments after Middle Eastern producers increased oil and gas output and exports ahead of an interim deal to halt the war between the United States and Iran, the report added.
The state agency did not provide additional detail about the crash site, flight purpose, or whether the helicopter was transporting personnel linked to terminal operations. The timeline in the report is limited to the time of the crash and the statements about the investigation and recent resumption of crude loadings.
As the inquiry proceeds, officials are expected to release further information. For now, the publicly available account is limited to the fatalities, the launch of an official probe, the timing of the incident, and Aramco's recent resumption of activity at Ras Tanura.