The chopper crashed some 20 kilometers away from the town of Klin located to the north-west of the Russian capital. The aircraft fell in a deserted area, the military said, adding that the incident resulted in no casualties on the ground.
The helicopter was performing a regular training flight when the incident happened. The exact reasons of the crash are unknown but preliminary data suggests that it might have been caused by a technical malfunction.
A special investigative group of the Air Force major command has been dispatched to the crash site.
Developed in the Soviet Union in the mid-1960s, Mi-8 military transport and multipurpose helicopters are considered among the most reliable and massively produced choppers in the world. The aircraft are still manufactured in Russia and are actively used in more than 50 countries.