At least five have been killed after a small police plane crashed into the ocean near a popular beach town in Thailand, authorities have said, per reports.

Six police officers have been killed in Thailand after their plane crashed into the sea during a test flight for parachute training, police have said. The small plane was seen crashing into the water at around 08:00 local time (01:00 GMT) on Friday in the Cha-am district, a coastal resort area some 130km (80 miles) southwest of Bangkok.

A sixth person is critically injured in hospital.