Australian walks away from helicopter crash while fighting fires in remote Indonesia

Jakarta: An Australian pilot has escaped with minor injuries after his helicopter plunged into a remote Indonesian river while fighting fires that have raged across the island of Borneo, as authorities search for a third crew member.

The Super Puma H225 helicopter was supporting forest and land fire-extinguishing operations and can be seen in video footage attempting to collect water for water-bombing when it loses altitude and nosedives into the Barito River in South Kalimantan.

Berton Panjaitan, a spokesman for Indonesia’s National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNBD), initially said both pilots were Australian. However, local media is now reporting that Panjaitan had since revised his statement to say one of the pilots was from New Zealand.

Australian pilot Michael John Betterridge and New Zealander Hugh Andrew John Page “have both been found in good health”, Panjaitan said. The third crew member – Indonesian helicopter landing officer Yayan Supyansuri – is missing.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said it was providing consular assistance to one Australian rescued after the crash. “Australian officials are in close contact with local authorities following the incident,” a spokesperson said.

Betterridge and Page were receiving medical attention and their families had been contacted, Panjaitan said.

“We have also ensured that the two crew members who have been found receive medical examinations and any necessary medical care,” Panjaitan said. “We have conveyed to the families of those involved that the government is placing serious priority on the search, rescue, and care of all the helicopter’s crew members.”

An 18-strong team from the South Kalimantan Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) has been dispatched to the scene for the rescue effort. Panjaitan said the priority was to locate Supyansuri and “ensure that the entire search and evacuation process is conducted safely”.

“Second, we are ensuring proper care for the crew members who have already been recovered. The BNPB is co-ordinating with relevant parties to ensure that both pilots receive necessary medical examinations and treatment,” he said.

The helicopter has been moved to the riverbank for further investigation. Panjaitan said it was too early to say what caused the crash, and he did not wish to speculate before the official investigation results are available.

“This incident is a matter of serious concern for the BNPB, particularly regarding air operations for forest and land fire management,” he said, promising a “comprehensive evaluation of safety aspects in our air operations”.

The scale of this year’s fires in Indonesia is unprecedented, and comes after months of drought fuelled by what is shaping up to be the strongest El Nino on record, as well as underlying climate change.

From January to September this year, 1.9 million hectares of land burnt across Indonesia, according to satellite imagery analysed by Nusantara Atlas using peer-reviewed methodology. That is 38 per cent higher than the comparable period in 2019, the previous worst year on record for fires in Indonesia.

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