Fire helicopter lacked collision-avoidance system before midair crash

One of two firefighting helicopters that collided in midair over a Southern California brush fire lacked an electronic warning device that alerts pilots to approaching aircraft -- a critical deficiency, according to at least one former wildland fire pilot. As the National Traffic Safety Board continues to investigate the fatal, Aug. 6 crash of two contract California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection helicopters, a career pilot and advocate for collision avoidance systems is calling attention to the fact that one of the choppers lacked a traffic collision-avoidance system, or TCAS, which audibly alerts pilots when another aircraft is nearby. "I'm frankly shocked that this is not required on contract helicopters to this day," said Juan Browne, a former U.S. Forest Service lead plane pilot who now flies Boeing 777s out of Los Angeles for a major airline. "That's the one last piece of safety equipment that could have prevented this accident," he said. The helicopter crash, which killed three, marks a rare instance in which an aviation battle of a California fire has resulted in a midair collision.