Flying near fires in helicopters is dangerous work, says Blenheim principal rural fire chief Ross Hamilton, who expects to return to Marlborough today after helping battle a blaze in Northland.
Mr Hamilton joined a National Rural Fire Authority instant management team on Thursday to oversee men and machinery fighting a fire which has burned 145 hectares and destroyed 15 baches on Karikari Peninsula in Northland.
Helicopter pilot John de Ridder and Department of Conservation ranger William Macrae of Kaitaia were killed on Wednesday night when their helicopter crashed during a reconnaissance flight over the fire.
Mr Hamilton has been flying over the site in the same model of Squirrel helicopter involved in the fatal crash.
Large fires created a lot of turbulence which combined with wind, smoke and darkness could make flying very dangerous, he said.
Similar accidents often happened in the US and Australia.
"We are in a dangerous game and know it, which is why we run lots of briefings and safety checks."
Mr Hamilton suspected the pilot who died could have been disoriented in the dark, smoke and perhaps turbulence.
Yesterday Mr Hamilton pulled all firefighters off the job after rain quenched the blaze.
He said the Karikari locals had been magnificent to work with.
- The Marlborough Express
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