Six People Killed In Incident

Aviation law specialists at Irwin Mitchell hope for prompt identification of the causes of a helicopter crash in north-eastern Spain which led to the death of the pilot and five firefighters.
 
The Bell 407 aircraft, which was being used as part of efforts to put out a wildfire close to Villel, came down between Villastar and Cubla on Saturday afternoon (March 19th).

Only one of the passengers on board the flight survived the crash, which occurred after helicopter (believed to be owned and operated by INAER) had taken off from a base in Alcorisa and commenced its journey towards the fire.

Irwin Mitchell’s Aviation Law team, which specialises in providing support to those who have lost loved ones in air accidents across the world, has called for the investigation into the incident to be carried out both quickly and thoroughly so that the causes can be identified and flight safety lessons learned.

Jim Morris, a former RAF pilot and Partner in the team, said: “As only a few details are so far known about this crash, it is vital that authorities in Spain consider all avenues when pulling together information on the events leading up to the incident.

“Key issues for consideration will undoubtedly include whether a mechanical failure of any kind may have contributed in some way, particularly as we believe the pilot was very experienced in both flying and fire-related flights of this kind. In addition, we believe weather conditions were good and there were no concerns in relation to visibility.”

Ana Romero, an aviation team lawyer based in the Irwin Mitchell Malaga Office, Spain states: “Incidents of this kind can have a devastating impact on the families of those involved, who will undoubtedly be seeking answers as to what happened and reassurances that such a crash will not happen again.

“I hope that the CIAIAC and criminal investigations proceed quickly so that the families and the aviation industry can understand what went wrong.”