Firefighting Pilot Killed in Single-Engine Plane Crash

A tragic accident occurred while battling the Horse Gulch Fire northeast of Helena, Montana, resulting in the death of pilot Juliana Turchetti. 

For more than 25 years, the pilot worked for Dauntless Air, a firefighting aircraft firm located in Idaho. The U.S. Forest Service was loaned the firm, which had a contract to fly for the Idaho Department of Lands. Turchetti, 45, was a Brazilian national working in the United States on an unsecured visa. In Brazil, she left “numerous” relatives and a son who is 17 years old.

Turchetti also owned the Aviatori Coffee House in Springfield, Illinois. She began her “coffee career” by roasting green coffee beans and selling them at farmer’s markets.

Juliana perished while scooping water out of a reservoir with her Air Tractor to fight a nearby blaze.

This tragic news was shared in a statement released by Dauntless. Local officials in Helena, Montana, as well as the Federal Aviation Administration, the National Transportation Safety Board, the United States Forest Service, the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation, and Dauntless Air, are all working together to investigate this unfortunate incident.

As of early Thursday afternoon, the human-caused Horse Gulch Fire had spread to 2,000 acres. All roadways north and south of Canyon Ferry Road between JimTown Road and the Broadwater County line are still subject to evacuation orders. Several trails and roads in the Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest are also closed.

High winds and temperatures will be challenging for the firefighters. There is hope for a thunderstorm in the late afternoon that may add to tamping down the flames.

The National Transportation Safety Board, with help from the Federal Aviation Administration and the Lewis and Clark County Sheriff’s Office, is investigating Wednesday’s crash. 

Both the governors of Montana and Idaho, Greg Gianforte and Brad Little, were shocked to hear of the pilot’s death and asked their constituents to keep the family and friends of the fallen hero in their prayers.