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Major General Turki Al-Malki, the official spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition to restore legitimacy in Yemen, issued a statement on the crash of a reconnaissance helicopter in the kingdom’s southern Najran region. The Saudi Press Agency published the announcement, detailing that the AH-6i helicopter belonging to the Ministry of the National Guard went down inside Saudi territory as the result of a technical malfunction. The incident led to the martyrdom of the aircraft’s aircrew, which consisted of two officers, Al-Malki confirmed in the release. The spokesman extended condolences to the families of the deceased officers through the official channel.
Al-Malki prayed for the two officers in the statement distributed by the Saudi Press Agency, asking the Almighty to envelop them in mercy, accept them among the honourable martyrs and inspire patience and solace in their relatives. The phrase “To Allah we belong and to Him we shall return” concluded the coalition’s message on the loss. Najran, located near the Yemeni border, has faced repeated threats from Houthi militants in the course of the prolonged Yemen conflict, a Reuters dispatch noted.
The southwestern area of Najran has been subject to attacks by Iran-aligned Houthis in recent weeks as fighting between the coalition and the Yemen-based group escalated, according to the Reuters report. Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea claimed on X that his forces had downed a Saudi reconnaissance aircraft in the Hajjah governorate. Al-Malki responded to the assertion by posting an image of several aircraft of the same type and writing that the aircraft would enter the field soon despite the claims.
The coalition, which has been operating since 2015 to back Yemen’s recognised government against the Houthis, frequently reports on military incidents along the border, Saudi Press Agency records show. The Saudi National Guard maintains a significant presence in the southern provinces to secure the frontier, according to official statements. Technical malfunctions have been cited in previous aviation accidents in the region, according to multiple statements from Saudi authorities over the years.
The Ministry of National Guard has not released the names of the two officers who perished in Sunday’s crash. Investigations into the precise cause of the technical failure are expected to follow standard military protocols, the coalition statement indicated. No further details on the crash had been released by the ministry as of October 18, 2026.
