A Russian military helicopter crashed in Chechnya on Friday, killing three crew members and 15 paratroopers on board, the Itar-Tass news agency reported, citing military sources.

"During an airlifting operation of paratroopers south of Shatoi, a helicopter Mi-8 has fallen down at 11:34 Moscow time (0734 GMT) on Friday," Russian Air Force spokesperson Alexander Drobyshevsky was quoted as saying.

A team of investigators have arrived at the site to look into the cause of the crash, the spokesman said.

He said the incident might be caused by technical malfunction or shelling from the ground.

Russian military force is conducting a special operation against a group of gunmen in the Shatoi region, Itar-Tass said, citing anonymous sources in the Chechen republican law enforcement agencies.

Three helicopters with paratroopers were dispatched for fire support in the area, where the special operation is underway, Itar-Tass said.