Firefighting helicopters grounded on horror day for fires

Six firefighting helicopters have been grounded across the country ahead of one of the worst days for bushfires this season.

Firefighting helicopters have been grounded following a crash in Victoria. Picture: AAP

Six firefighting helicopters have been grounded across the country ahead of one of the worst days for bushfires this season.

The decision to ground the choppers, dubbed “Aircranes”, follows the crash of a helicopter while assisting with fires in the remote Gippsland region of eastern Victoria.

The Sikorsky S-64E skycrane was believed to be refilling from a dam near the Thomson Reservoir at Jericho, when it “landed heavily”.

The two pilots and one engineer on board were able to extricate themselves and swim to safety, with only minor injuries.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau is investigating, and an Emergency Management Commission state control centre spokesman said Victoria’s other Aircrane would remain grounded until the all clear was given, along with those in other states.

“There are 47 other contracted aircraft available for firefighting activities,” he said.

“Preparations are being made for worsening fire conditions particularly in the western part of the state. There’s a severe fire rating across three of the fire areas tomorrow, including Mallee, Wimmera and South West.”

He said ideally all aircraft would be available for duty but a “safety first” approach was part of the national protocol.

“It’s an inherently dangerous environment and (the crash) shows the challenges of firefighting,” the spokesman said.

Valued at $30 million, the Aircranes have a 9000-litre water carrying capacity, making them a valuable resource for firefighting operations.

The spokesman said they were in “demand globally”.

There are two aircranes based in Victoria and two in New South Wales, and one each in South and Western Australia.

Kestrel Aviation which operates the Aircranes, was providing assistance to the ATSB as it investigated the crash.

Managing director, Captain Ray Cronin, said they were hopeful the rest of the Aircrane fleet would be reinstated to service across the country today.

“The crews are all with the aircraft and they are all ready to be dispatched as needed,” Capt Cronin said.

“If there’s no reason why they shouldn’t be back in the air, we want to make sure those services are reinstated as soon as possible to support the fire services on the ground.”

Although the cause of the crash remained under investigation, Capt Cronin said they had enough information to say confidently, that the Aircrane involved was “100 per cent serviceable prior to impact”.

It was unlikely the chopper would be returned to service, however.

“There’s a large amount of damage to the Aircrane and having been underwater, that won’t help the reinstatement of the Aircrane back into a working unit,” said Capt Cronin.

“We are just grateful that the crew is safe, and grateful to the firefighters on the bank who assisted them.”