Firefighting Helicopter Pilot Killed in Crash While Battling OR Wildfire

Firefighter fatality

The U.S. Fire Administration reported on the death of a pilot who died in a helicopter crash last month in Oregon.

On Monday, August 24, 2020, Pilot Thomas Duffy, flying a Type 1 Kmax helicopter, was conducting bucket drops while battling the White River Fire in Mount Hood National Forest, when his helicopter crashed.  He worked for Central Copters, Inc., a private family run company out of Belgrade, Montana, as a wildland-contract pilot for the U.S. Forest Service.  The official cause of the crash is under investigation.

Pilot Duffy was 40 years old.

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