While battling a wildfire in France’s Finistère department, a Morane 29 firefighting helicopter crashed into a pond during a water collection maneuver, Le Parisien reported on August 24, citing Izvestiya.
According to the Finistère Prefecture, the accident occurred when the helicopter’s bucket made contact with the water’s surface, causing the aircraft to lose balance and crash.
Fortunately, both the pilot and a fire officer managed to exit the cockpit safely and survived without life-threatening injuries. Local officials, including Prefect Louis Le Franck, Department President Maël de Calan, and SDIS First Vice President Jean-Marc Pouchois, praised the “professionalism, composure, and courage” of the crew during the ordeal.
The Morane 29 has been in use for firefighting since 2023. This summer alone, it carried out 33 sorties and completed 154 water drops, helping extinguish dozens of fires across France.
The incident comes just a day after another helicopter crash on August 23 in Kyrgyzstan, where a rescue mission to save a Russian climber stranded on Victory Peak ended with the helicopter crash-landing and injuring the entire rescue team.
