Two firefighting helicopter crashes in Indonesia within a week

China News Service, Jakarta, November 8 (Reporter Li Zhiquan) An Indonesian helicopter on a forest and land fire fighting mission crashed into the Barito River in Barito Kuala County, South Kalimantan Province on the 8th. Two people on board were rescued and one person died.

This is the second firefighting helicopter crash in Indonesia within a week. On November 4, an Indonesian military helicopter crashed while performing a wildfire fighting mission, killing three people.

Indonesia's National Disaster Management Agency reported on the 8th that the accident occurred on a "Super Puma" H-225 helicopter, which was performing forest and land fire fighting missions at the time of the incident. The agency initially reported that all three crew members on board were rescued, but later revised the news to say that two foreign pilots were rescued and one Indonesian crew member was missing. The latest news shows that the remains of the missing persons have been found by search and rescue personnel.

Video footage showed that after the firefighting helicopter used a bucket to fetch water from the Barito River, its fuselage gradually sank and eventually fell into the water nose down.

Currently, the cause of the accident is still under investigation. Indonesia's National Disaster Management Agency stated that it will comprehensively assess the safety of aviation operations, including the technical status of the fleet, water collection operation procedures, crew qualifications, weather and other factors.

On November 4, an Indonesian military helicopter carrying eight people crashed while performing a fire-fighting mission in Central Kalimantan province, killing three soldiers and five others were rescued. According to a statement from the Indonesian military, when the accident occurred, the helicopter was fetching water from the sea for aerial water spraying to extinguish the fire.