Hard landing for ‘legendary’ chopper pilot
Helicopter ‘‘legend’’ Bill Reid is the pilot recovering in hospital after a crash while fighting the forest fire near Nelson.
Reid suffered minor injuries on Sunday when his helicopter made a hard landing while fighting the Tasman
Eves Valley.
Emergency services found the helicopter and pilot in a bush area inside the cordon. The helicopter was not on fire.
Reid Helicopters, a familyowned company prominent in the area, confirmed one of their helicopters was involved but did not say what caused the helicopter to go down.
wildfire
near
The pilot jettisoned a monsoon bucket and made a mayday call before the incident, Reid Helicopters said.
A representative of Reid Helicopters declined to comment when contacted by The Press yesterday.
However, Beck Helicopters pilot Alan Beck said Bill Reid, the pilot involved in the crash, is a world-renowned helicopter operator with more than 45 years of experience flying helicopters.
Beck said Reid’s father, John Reid, was one of the founders of the helicopter industry in New Zealand.
‘‘The fact that he got it [the helicopter] down and saved himself meant that his training must have kicked in,’’ Beck said.
‘‘He did a beautiful job putting it down.’’
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