Australia to Join Indonesia's Wildfire Waterbombing Operations

Australia will join Indonesia’s waterbombing operations to help extinguish fires that have continued for months, a government agency announced on Thursday, shortly after a helicopter crashed during a firefighting mission on Borneo island, resulting in one fatality and multiple injuries. The New South Wales Rural Fire Service has sent one C-130 Hercules and a Cessna Citation aircraft to support Indonesia, with both scheduled to participate in the firefighting efforts from Nov. 6 to 12, Indonesia’s disaster mitigation agency BNPB said in a statement.

Australian Support for Firefighting Efforts

The Australian Government has sent two aircraft and 20 firefighting experts to aid in tackling forest and land fires in East Kalimantan from November 6–12, 2026. Australian Ambassador to Indonesia Rod Brazier confirmed that the support comprises a C-130 Large Air Tanker—supplied by the New South Wales (NSW) Rural Fire Service—and a Cessna Citation lead aircraft. He mentioned that technical teams from Indonesia and Australia had discussed which areas needed help before choosing to deploy the Australian aircraft to East Kalimantan. The Large Air Tanker can drop as much as 15,000 liters of water per sortie, with a projected capacity of up to six sorties per day.

Fatal Helicopter Crash

An Indonesian Army helicopter crashed while conducting a forest firefighting mission near Tanjung Puting National Park in Central Kalimantan on Wednesday, with two of its crews confirmed dead. Commander at XXII/Tambun Bungai Military District, Major General Zainul Arifin, confirmed the MI-17V5 helicopter crashed while preparing for water bombing. “There were eight crews. Five have received medical care and another two were confirmed dead,” Arifin said. Another crew remains missing and a search operation has been organized. The helicopter was performing a round-trip flight between Kuala Pembuang and Telaga Pulang when it encountered technical problems mid-flight.

Australia Sends Planes to Fight Indonesia's Worst Wildfires in 11 Years

Indonesia’s Wildfire Crisis

Indonesia has been facing its most severe wildfires in 11 years, with vast areas of land burned, primarily on the islands of Sumatra, Borneo and Papua. Fire and haze have led to over 400,000 cases of acute respiratory infections in seven provinces, Health Ministry data showed. Indonesia has persisted with “massive efforts” to control the fires, including waterbombing and cloud seeding operations, and the involvement of foreign assistance, Kristomei Sianturi, head of the disaster mitigation agency, said. Australia noted that in 2020, it received assistance from personnel of the Indonesian National Board for Disaster Management (BNPB) and the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) when dealing with forest fires.