Two Australians on water-bombing helicopter that crashed fighting Indonesia blazes

Two Australians survived a water-bombing helicopter crash in Indonesia, according to multiple outlets reporting on the same incident. Nine.com.au first flagged that two Australians had survived the crash, with no further detail on injuries or the third crew member at that time. SBS later reiterated that two Australians survived the crash in South Kalimantan province and that both pilots were receiving medical treatment after the aircraft went down on Sunday, as rescuers continued searching for a third crew member who was on board and is described as an Indonesian citizen.

The National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) confirmed an 18-person rescue team had been deployed to locate the missing crew member near the Barito River, where Indonesian authorities believe the helicopter crashed during firefighting operations. The reports tie the incident to Indonesia’s ongoing efforts to combat widespread wildfires, with firefighting assistance from Australia noted as part of the regional response to the fires that have affected Borneo and Sumatra since July amid a strong El Niño.

SMH.com.au added that the firefighting helicopter crash occurred while operating on Borneo as part of the firefighting campaign, with an Indonesian crew member reported missing after plunging into a remote river. Australian observers indicated Australians were on board, and that they walked away from the crash site, though no confirmed details about injuries, medical status, or transport to hospital were provided in the material.

Yahoo News Australia summarized the event by stating a firefighting helicopter carrying Australian crew members crashed into a river in Indonesia, with two Australian pilots confirmed to have survived and a third crew member missing. The sources cited include Yahoo News Australia, Oz Arab Media, and SMH.com.au, and the material describes the operation as water-bombing for firefighting purposes. Video footage referenced in Oz Arab Media purportedly shows the aircraft collecting water immediately before losing control and plunging into a river in South Kalimantan, though the exact time and river name were not specified in the material.

The aggregation of reporting from Latest News from Azerbaijan echoed that two Australian crew members survived and a third, an Indonesian colleague, was missing, with the incident described as taking place during water-scooping operations on Borneo. The Azerbaijani material notes that rescuers launched a search along the Barito River to locate the missing crew member, and that authorities were coordinating with ongoing firefighting efforts in the region.

Across the reporting materials, a consistent gap remains regarding the helicopter’s model, operating company, and registration details, as well as the exact time of the crash and the precise coordinates. While two Australians are described as safe, the materials do not confirm any injuries, medical status, or whether they were transported for medical care, beyond noting that they were receiving medical treatment (per SBS). The third crew member’s status is described as missing in SMH.com.au reporting, with no additional confirmed information about identity or condition in the supplied material.

Rescuers and search-and-rescue teams were actively deployed to the Barito River crash site, with BNPB indicating an 18-member unit was involved in the mission to locate the missing Indonesian crew member. The ongoing search is framed within the broader firefighting campaign across the region, where authorities have been battling the worst wildfires in a decade and have received international firefighting assistance, including from Australia.

There is no detail in the supplied material about the cause of the crash, any environmental impact or property damage, or formal aviation safety investigations at this time. The reporting focuses on the survival of two Australians, the search for a missing Indonesian crew member, and the involvement of local emergency services and BNPB in coordinating rescue efforts along the Barito River during Indonesia’s fire-fighting operations in South Kalimantan.