“He is very emotionally unstable and constantly asks about the people who were with him in the helicopter,” said a friend of Luis Filipe Rebelo, the pilot of the plane that crashed into the Douro River on Friday with five soldiers on board.
Albano Cunha says his friend did not talk about what happened, but he believes that “the hypothesis that it was a technical malfunction takes on great importance” because “until now” it has not been demonstrated that, from a health point of view, “it gave him something.”
On the other hand, he emphasizes that Luis Filipe Rebelo has more than 15 years of experience and is a professional, “extremely rigorous and dedicated to his profession.” Thus, Albano Cunha believes that “what happened was definitely not due to the pilot’s incompetence.”
He adds that even when hanging out with friends and not working, “he goes home early to get his sleep and rest routine.”
Luis Filipe Rebelo, 44, managed to get out of the plane under his own power and was rescued by a pleasure boat, pulled from the water by several people on the boat. He was treated and taken to the Vila Real hospital. He was injured and, according to a friend, “out of danger.”
However, Albano Cunha adds that “emotionally he is very shaken,” especially worried about the soldiers who traveled with him. This worry does not surprise his friend, who always considered him “an altruistic person.” Moreover, “he treats aviation with great respect and a very professional approach,” his friend says.
Tragedy in Armamar
In August 2017, Américo Souza, a firefighting helicopter pilot based at the Armamar Air Resources Center, died when Castro Daire, fighting a blaze in Cabril, crashed into high-voltage lines and set them on fire if he hit the ground. He had four years of experience.
The commander dies
In September 2019, Noel Ferreira, a fire chief on the island of Sete, Paredes, died after the “helicopter” he was flying collided with high-voltage cables.
First
Pilot José Nunes Abreu, 43, died in November 2007 during his first firefighting mission in an incident involving an Ecureil B3 helicopter in the parish of Parada do Monte, municipality of Melgaço.
Author: Paula Goncalves
Source: CM Jornal
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