Three US firefighters who died when their air tanker crashed while battling fires in Australia have been identified.
Captain Ian McBeth, 45, first officer Paul Clyde Hudson, 43, and flight engineer Rick A DeMorgan Jr, 44, were killed in New South Wales (NSW) on Thursday.
The cause of the C-130 crash is not known and investigations into the incident have been complicated by the area’s “active” bushfire status.
Officials lost contact with the plane shortly before 1.30pm local time (2.30am GMT) just after it dumped a large load of retardant on a fire in the Snowy Mountains, south of Canberra.
Coulson Aviation, a Canadian firm that owns the plane, released a statement on Friday naming the crew.
It said Mr McBeth, from Great Falls in Montana, was a “highly qualified and respected C-130 pilot with many years fighting fire, both in the military and with Coulson Aviation.”
His love for his wife Bowdie and children Abigail, Calvin and Ella was "evident for anyone who spent time around him", it added.
Mr Hudson, from Buckeye in Arizona, had previously served for two decades in the US Marine Corps, including as a C-130 pilot. He is survived by his wife, Noreen.
Mr DeMorgan served in the US Air Force for 18 years as a flight engineer on the C-130.
His passion “was always flying and his children” Lucas and Logan, Coulson Aviation said.
Firefighters in Australia held a minute's silence and flags on official buildings in NSW were flown at half-mast as a mark of respect on Friday.
At a farewell for 32 US firefighters who were returning home after weeks on duty, Rural Fire Service Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons said: "We will forever be indebted to the enormous contribution and indeed the ultimate sacrifice that's been paid as a result of these extraordinary individuals doing a remarkable job.”
Investigators will visit the one-kilometre long crash site on Friday to retrieve the plane’s black box cockpit voice recorder.
Coulson Aviation grounded its other large air tankers immediately after the crash but said on Friday they would be returning to work "in the very near future".
There have been two previous crashes involving C-130 aircraft while fighting wildfires, one in 2002 in California and again in 2012 in South Dakota.
