'No sign of life' after military helicopter carrying four Americans crashes in Arctic Norway during NATO 'cold response' training exercise

 Norwegian officials said there were no signs of life after a military helicopter carrying four American crashed in the Artic Norway on Friday during a NATO training exercise.    

The MV-22B Osprey aircraft belonging to the U.S. Marine Corps was taking part in a NATO military exercise called Cold Response when it was reported missing at 6:26 p.m., the Joint Rescue Coordination Centres (JRCC) said.A rescue helicopter and a Norwegian military Orion plane searching the area spotted the wreckage from the air at 8:17 p.m. after receiving an emergency signal.

'We've discovered an aircraft that has crashed. We've seen no sign of life,' Nordland police chief of staff Bent Eilertsen told Reuters.

'We've been told it's an American aircraft with four Americans on board,' he said.

The U.S. Marine Corps confirmed that an incident occurred with the aircraft and said the incident remains under investigation. 

'Norwegian civil authorities are leading the search and rescue efforts at this time,' The Second Marine Expeditionary Force said in a statement. 'We are grateful for their efforts and will assist them... in all manners possible.' 

While tensions are high between NATO and Russia following the invasion of Ukraine last month, NATO said in a statement that the training exercise was unrelated and scheduled eight months in advance.  

A U.S. Marine Corps MV-22B Osprey, like the one pictured above, has crashed into the Artic Norway on Friday

The aircraft crashes south of Bodo, in Norway, on its way to a base in the area

There are 3,000 U.S. Marines in northern Norway participating in the Cold Response 22 NATO exercise, which is held every two years to help train NATO forces how to operate in the Artic

The U.S. Marine Corps confirmed that an incident occurred with the aircraft and said the incident remains under investigation