Two pilots died when a firefighting Canadair scooper dropping water on a fire in the south of Greece crashed after a water drop; Greece’s air force confirmed that the pilots were killed on the island of Evia.
The Independent reported that two Hellenic Air Force pilots, Commander Christos Moulas, 34, and his 27-year-old co-pilot Pericles Stefanidis, were killed when their Canadair CL-215 crashed on Tuesday.
The accident occurred near the town of Karystos on the island of Evia near Athens, where a fire has been burning for several days. Local media reported that the plane’s wing clipped a tree after a drop; two helicopters and several ambulances responded immediately.
An Agence France-Presse report said the aircraft plunged into a ravine after clipping the tree. A fire service spokesman told the BBC the aircraft was a Greek Air Force plane.
A third successive heat wave in Greece has pushed temperatures back above 40°C (104°F) across parts of the country following more nighttime evacuations ahead of fires that have burned out of control for many days. The latest evacuations were ordered on the islands of Corfu and Evia, and a wildfire on the island of Rhodes has been moving inland.
Hundreds of firefighters, helped by forces from Turkey and Slovakia, have been battling the Rhodes fire since Wednesday after it resurged in hot and windy conditions. Tourists have been warned of the extreme fire risk in Crete, and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis cautioned residents and visitors about tough days ahead.
“All of us are standing guard,” he said. “In the face of what the entire planet is facing, especially the Mediterranean which is a climate change hotspot, there is no magical defense mechanism — if there was we would have implemented it.”
~ Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis
A three-day period of mourning in the armed forces has been announced in memory of the pilots who died. Defence Minister Nikos Dendias said they lost their lives in “the line of duty … while attempting to protect the lives and property of citizens, as well as the environment of our country.”
The accident occurred nearly 16 years to the day when two Greek pilots lost their lives fighting wildfires on July 23, 2007. (Another crash near Athens had a much happier outcome back in 2016.)
The Guardian posted video of the accident, claiming the scooper was “spraying water” before the crash.
~ Thanks and a tip of the hardhat to Alex, Bob, and Tim.
Video shows the Scooper approaching extremely low on a spot fire with an uphill exit. The right wing float hits a tree (departs the aircraft) and the aircraft skews to the right. Right wing remains low right to the point of impact. No noticeable control surface movement past the float departing the wing. Both mills still turning.
Very Sad! Both accidents of the CL415 (one last year) were both initiated by a right banking turn over twenty to thirty five degrees. Visualize this, regardless if it is a left or right bank on final, the only reference is out the windscreen and side windows. Windscreen is a “tilt” of the horizon and the side window is looking at the ground. There now is a guess of were the drop targets lays in reference to the aircraft. You have entered the world of “time dilation (race car drivers call it “blink”. Only lasting seconds remain before you release the load training and practice makes this type banking drop possible. Aero Union Corporation when converting their DC 4 (R5D, C54’s) saw this as a potential problem when banking at 20 to 35 degrees on final for the drop. In order to facilitate a safer entry into the drop while banking, Aero Union with FAA approval (STC) installed window(s) directly above the pilot and first officer seats, just before the start of the curvature of the fuselage. Instead of looking at a tilting terrain out the windscreen and watching the terrain under you pass by quickly. With these windows you had a much better reference of setting up for the drop. Does the CL215. 415, 515 have these above pilot windows? The easiest and safest drop are straight and level, in a perfect world.
The recent crash in Greece was a CL-215
Astonishingly similar to this crash last year.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tn-u1fBV7rY
Flying these missions is truly a dangerous business and in my opinion as bad (if not more so) as flying combat missions. Rest In Peace gentlemen, the rest of us have the watch now..