A helicopter with 18 people on board ditched west of Shetland to the north-east of the British mainland and nine people were injured and the remaining nine went missing, local media reported on Friday.

The incident happened west of Sumburgh airport. The helicopter was used to transport people to oil and gas platforms in the North Sea, the online Scotsman quoted police as saying.

A ferry travelling between Shetland and Aberdeen in northeastern Scotland was diverted to help with the rescue late on Friday, and the coastguard were also sent to the scene, said the report.

In October last year, all 19 people were rescued after the helicopter they boarded ditched some 50 kilometers south of Shetland in the North Sea.

Helicopters are often used by Energy companies to ferry workers back and forth from rigs to explore large deposits of oil and gas in the North Sea. Endi

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