2 firefighting helicopters collide midair near Athens as Europe’s wildfire emergency rages
The fire service said the helicopters were carrying two crew members each and investigators have started examining the cause of the collision.
- On Sunday, two Bell firefighting helicopters collided midair over Psatha west of Athens while battling a wind-driven wildfire, killing two crew members and leaving two others alive.
- Force 10 winds created extreme turbulence that hampered aerial firefighting operations, prompting Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis to warn of "extremely difficult" conditions preventing aircraft from operating safely.
- Television footage showed one helicopter exploding after an apparent rotor strike; the four-person crew included one Greek, one Danish, and two British nationals involved in the midair collision.
- Fire spread forced evacuations in Porto Germeno and Agios Nektarios, where Greek police went door-to-door urging residents to flee as wildfires devastated over 12,000 hectares.
- The incident carries grim resonance with the 2018 Mati wildfire that killed 104 people, as wildfire meteorologist Theodore Giannaros said the Porto Germeno blaze is "highly likely" to be classified as a megafire.
415 Articles
415 Articles
2 firefighting helicopters collide as Greece battles devastating Wildfires
Two firefighting helicopters crashed while battling wildfires west of Athens on Sunday, triggering a major search and rescue operation as Greece continued to battle multiple blazes fuelled by extreme heat and strong winds, the international media and BBC reported. According to the Greek Fire Service, the collision occurred in the wider Psatha area of Attica, west of Athens. The two Bell helicopters, leased by the fire department, had taken off f…
Kreiszeitung
Two pilots died in the heavy forest fires in Greece. There is a video of the tragedy.
Associated Press News
Water-dropping aircraft take off to tackle major Greek wildfire, after 2 killed in crash
Water-dropping planes and helicopters have taken off at first light to help hundreds of firefighters battling a major wildfire west of Athens, Greece.
Two helicopters collide while battling wildfire in Greece
ATHENS — Two helicopters collided mid-air in Greece while battling wildfire in the Psatha area of Athens on Sunday, killing two crew members.The fatalities were a Danish pilot and a Greek fire service liaison officer. A British pilot and another Greek co-ordinator on the second helicopter survived.Video of the incident some 65 km west of the capital Athens shows one of the two Bell helicopters hitting the propellers of the other, which bursts in…
Coverage Details
Bias Distribution
- 35% of the sources lean Left, 35% of the sources are Center
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
