A firefighting helicopter crash in South Kalimantan, Indonesia has killed one crew member and left two others hospitalised, according to Indonesia's National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) and reporting by ABC News, as relayed by the New Zealand Herald. The aircraft, a Super Puma H-225, went down during active water-bombing operations against wildfires that have been consuming large areas of the Indonesian archipelago.
What Happened in the Firefighting Helicopter Crash Over the Barito River
BNPB confirmed that the helicopter belonged to a company hired under contract by disaster authorities to conduct aerial firefighting operations, and was performing water-bombing duties at the time it went down. According to ABC News, the aircraft came down in the Barito River in South Kalimantan, with the wreckage subsequently recovered to the riverbank so that investigators could begin work on determining the cause.
Video circulating online showed the helicopter hovering over water before nosediving, according to BNPB and reporting by the New Zealand Herald. An investigation is ongoing, BNPB confirmed, and no cause has been determined. You can follow developing incidents and accident records in our Squawk 7700 hub, which tracks aviation emergencies and investigations. We will update our coverage if BNPB or investigators release further information.
The Crew: One Dead, Two Survivors
Indonesian crew member Yayan Supyansuri died in the crash, according to BNPB and the New Zealand Herald. The two survivors have been identified as Hugh Andrew John Page, a New Zealand national, and Michael John Betterridge, an Australian national, BNPB and the New Zealand Herald confirmed.
Both Page and Betterridge received medical care at an Indonesian Air Force hospital, ABC News reported. BNPB spokesperson Berton Panjaitan confirmed that the two survivors were "in good health," according to the New Zealand Herald.
Readers looking for more detail on the aircraft type involved can use our Aircraft Search tool to explore the Super Puma H-225's operational history.
The Fires Driving These Operations
The helicopter crash took place in the context of a major wildfire crisis across Indonesia. Fires have been burning in Kalimantan, Sumatra and Papua, according to BNPB. The BBC reports that the fires are being fuelled by drought conditions worsened by El Niño, and that haze from the blazes has spread beyond Indonesian borders, affecting air quality in both Malaysia and Singapore.
Aerial water-bombing is one of the primary tools disaster authorities have deployed against the fires. The risks to crew operating in these conditions have now been underlined twice in quick succession.
A Second Crash Within Days
This is not the first firefighting helicopter to come down in Indonesia in recent days. Another aircraft conducting similar operations crashed in Central Kalimantan a short time before this incident, killing all three crew members on board, BNPB confirmed and the New Zealand Herald reported. The BBC also reports that the military has retrieved the black box from that earlier Central Kalimantan crash, suggesting a formal investigation into that accident is also under way.
Two fatal crashes of contracted firefighting helicopters within days, over the same fire zone, points to the severity of the conditions crews are working in. We offer no view on what caused either crash: that is for investigators to determine.
The Bottom Line
The death of Yayan Supyansuri and the hospitalisation of Page and Betterridge bring the human cost of Indonesia's aerial firefighting campaign sharply into focus. With wildfires continuing to burn across Kalimantan, Sumatra and Papua and investigations into two fatal crashes now running in parallel, BNPB faces pressure on both the emergency response and the safety of contracted operations. We will update our coverage as the investigation into the Barito River crash progresses.
This article draws on reporting by BBC and nzherald.
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