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Helicopters Collide in Greece as Fires Spread

Greek firefighters try to extinguish a wildfire in the area of Porto Germeno, some 70 kilometers (45 miles) northwest of Athens in the region of Viotia, on August 1, 2026. (AFP)
Greek firefighters try to extinguish a wildfire in the area of Porto Germeno, some 70 kilometers (45 miles) northwest of Athens in the region of Viotia, on August 1, 2026. (AFP)
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Helicopters Collide in Greece as Fires Spread

Greek firefighters try to extinguish a wildfire in the area of Porto Germeno, some 70 kilometers (45 miles) northwest of Athens in the region of Viotia, on August 1, 2026. (AFP)
Greek firefighters try to extinguish a wildfire in the area of Porto Germeno, some 70 kilometers (45 miles) northwest of Athens in the region of Viotia, on August 1, 2026. (AFP)

Two fire helicopters collided in Greece on Sunday as forces battled multiple wildfires that have devastated swathes of land, with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis warning of "extremely difficult" days ahead. 

The hired Bell helicopters collided while battling a wildfire in the Psatha area west of Athens, the fire service said on Sunday. 

"Search and rescue teams were immediately mobilized to locate and assist the crews," it said. 

State broadcaster ERT reported that one crewmember had been found safe, while rescuers were searching for the second. 

Television footage showed one of the helicopters explode and plunge to the ground in flames after an apparent rotor collision. 

Mitsotakis earlier said Greece was experiencing "extreme weather conditions" with winds that had reached 100 kilometers (60 miles) an hour. 

"When the winds blow with such force, even the dozens of aircraft we have at our disposal cannot operate safely," he wrote on Facebook. 

Nearly 500 firefighters were battling blazes around the popular coastal village of Porto Germeno, 70 kilometers northwest of Athens, the fire department said. 

They were attempting to keep the fire from approaching the western outskirts of Athens after it scaled a mountain overnight. 

Some 100 firefighters were fighting another blaze in Aigialia in the northern Peloponnese. 

A new fire broke out late Saturday on the Ionian Sea island of Cephalonia, Greece's popular holiday destination. 

A 44-year-old man was arrested Sunday in Cephalonia on suspicion of deliberately starting the fire, according to the Greek news agency ANA. 

The National Observatory's climate tracker meteo.gr said early estimates indicated that over 6,500 hectares (16,000 acres) had been burned in separate fires on the Gulf of Corinth which also swept Porto Germeno. 

It added that meteorological conditions remained adverse "mainly due to strong northerly winds, which, however, have partially weakened compared to previous days". 

- 'Is anyone there?' - 

Porto Germeno and other villages were evacuated when the fire broke out on Friday, but local authorities say scores of homes were damaged or destroyed. 

"We could not believe what we were seeing, the fire spread extremely rapidly," Nikos Georgopoulos from the laboratory of forest management at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, told state TV channel ERT. 

Footage released by Greek police showed officers going door to door in the village of Agios Nektarios, near Porto Germeno, evacuating residents as a wildfire approached. 

Riding motorcycles, officers sounded their sirens and knocked on every door, shouting, "Is anyone there?" 

AFP images showed Greek firefighters battling flames and towering clouds of smoke, while volunteers also helped fight the blaze in the area. 

Minas Tsotdanis, a farmer who lost his home in the blaze, said more than a dozen houses had been destroyed in the village. 

"Even if my home had been spared, all I would see would be this: a burned forest," he told AFP on Saturday, anxiously watching the flames. 

- 'Megafire' - 

Earlier this week, fires on the islands of Crete and Paros affected another 6,000 hectares, according to meteo.gr. 

Theodore Giannaros, a wildfire meteorologist and senior researcher at the National Observatory, said the fires around Porto Germeno appeared to have affected an area of over 10,000 hectares -- almost double the original estimate. 

"It is highly likely (if not almost certain) that this particular wildfire will be classified as a megafire," Giannaros wrote on Facebook. 

Firefighters have faced dozens of fires daily and Greece's Civil Protection Minister Evangelos Tournas on Saturday said the fire department had been "pushed to its limits". 

Three firefighters died in recent days in the line of duty, two in Crete and one in the Peloponnese. 

Gale-force winds created "extremely difficult conditions resulting in many cases where aircraft either cannot draw water or cannot carry out drops due to extreme turbulence", Tournas said. 

Though the winds eased late on Saturday, the greater Athens area and nearby Voiotia and the island of Evia were under near maximum fire risk on Sunday, the civil protection ministry said. 

Hit hard by the climate crisis like the rest of the Mediterranean region, Greece is plagued by wildfires every summer due to high temperatures, frequent heat waves and drought. 

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World

Iran Says Filed Complaint to UN Aviation Watchdog over US Flight Restrictions

The Iranian flag waves in front of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) headquarters, before the beginning of a board of governors meeting, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Vienna, Austria, March 1, 2021. (Reuters)
The Iranian flag waves in front of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) headquarters, before the beginning of a board of governors meeting, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Vienna, Austria, March 1, 2021. (Reuters)
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Iran Says Filed Complaint to UN Aviation Watchdog over US Flight Restrictions

The Iranian flag waves in front of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) headquarters, before the beginning of a board of governors meeting, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Vienna, Austria, March 1, 2021. (Reuters)
The Iranian flag waves in front of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) headquarters, before the beginning of a board of governors meeting, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Vienna, Austria, March 1, 2021. (Reuters)

Iran has lodged a complaint with the United Nations over US sanctions against its aviation sector that have forced the cancellation of flights, state media reported Monday. 

This month the United States imposed restrictions on the entire aviation industry in Iran and vowed to take a hard line against companies that assist it, said AFP. 

As the sanctions took effect last Wednesday, major airlines were forced to cancel international flights after several countries implemented bans. 

"To defend the legitimate rights of the aviation industry and counter illegal restrictions imposed by America, Iran has drafted and submitted a formal protest to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)," said civil aviation chief Abouzar Shiroudi, according to Iran's official IRNA news agency. 

The ICAO is a UN agency based in Montreal, Canada that sets and regulates standards for civil aviation. 

"In cooperation with the foreign ministry, we have also filed a complaint with the International Court of Justice at The Hague," Shiroudi added. 

For Iranians wishing to enter or exit their country, destinations in neighboring Türkiye are now the primary options for flights. 

Routes also remain available to Afghanistan, Pakistan, China, Russia, Malaysia and Thailand, with flights to the United Arab Emirates suspended. 

An official from Tehran's Imam Khomeini International Airport said Sunday that around 30 international destinations were still being served by Iranian airlines. 

 

 

 

World

Air Base at the Center of a UK Terror Probe Has Been Used by the US Air Force during the Iran War

28 September 2026, United Kingdom, Fairford: A police checkpoint near RAF Fairford after major incident was declared on Sunday, with armed police manning a cordon near the village of Whelford in Gloucestershire, near RAF Fairford which is used by the United States Air Force (USAF). Photo: Ben Birchall/PA Wire/dpa
28 September 2026, United Kingdom, Fairford: A police checkpoint near RAF Fairford after major incident was declared on Sunday, with armed police manning a cordon near the village of Whelford in Gloucestershire, near RAF Fairford which is used by the United States Air Force (USAF). Photo: Ben Birchall/PA Wire/dpa
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Air Base at the Center of a UK Terror Probe Has Been Used by the US Air Force during the Iran War

28 September 2026, United Kingdom, Fairford: A police checkpoint near RAF Fairford after major incident was declared on Sunday, with armed police manning a cordon near the village of Whelford in Gloucestershire, near RAF Fairford which is used by the United States Air Force (USAF). Photo: Ben Birchall/PA Wire/dpa
28 September 2026, United Kingdom, Fairford: A police checkpoint near RAF Fairford after major incident was declared on Sunday, with armed police manning a cordon near the village of Whelford in Gloucestershire, near RAF Fairford which is used by the United States Air Force (USAF). Photo: Ben Birchall/PA Wire/dpa

British police arrested five men on Sunday on suspicion of preparing an act of terrorism and explosives offenses outside RAF Fairford, a military base in western England that’s operated by the US Air Force.

Three suspicious vehicles are being searched, and counterterror officers are leading the investigation.

Here’s what to know about the base.

Fairford is a base for US bombers RAF Fairford, about 100 miles (160 kilometers) west of London, is one of several bases in Britain that has been used by the US Air Force under an agreement dating from the 1950s. It is home to the headquarters of the US Air Force’s 501st Combat Support Wing and is a forward operating location for US Air Force Global Strike Command.

There are about 11,000 American military personnel stationed at various sites in Britain, according to the House of Commons Library. The number of US personnel at RAF Fairford is not publicly available.

Fairford's long runway makes it suitable for heavy bombers, and it has been used in conflicts including the 2003 Iraq war and the US-Israeli war on Iran this year.

It has been used for strikes on Iran

Britain did not join the US-Israeli war on Iran that began Feb. 28 and initially denied President Donald Trump’s request to use bases in the UK to strike Iran. But then-Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced days later that he had agreed to let the US use bases in Britain for “defensive” operations against Iran’s missiles and their launch sites following Iranian attacks on UK interests and Britain’s allies in the Gulf.

American B-1 and B-52 bombers have taken off from Fairford for operations during the Iran conflict.

Security is tight at US bases in Britain

Anti-war campaigners have protested outside the perimeter fence of the base several times since the start of the Iran war.

It’s unclear whether the arrests are linked to the Iran war. British security officials say proxies linked to Iran are behind a string of arson and sabotage attempts in the UK and other countries, many of them targeting the Jewish community. They have previously warned that Tehran could expand its targets in the UK if conflicts in the Middle East continue.

Some local residents said security appeared to have been heightened around RAF Fairford in recent days, with heavy vehicles parked across entrance gates.

Another American base, RAF Lakenheath in eastern England, confirmed that it is on Charlie alert, the second-highest threat level that can be issued by the US Department of Defense. According to US military websites, Force Protection Condition Charlie “applies when an incident occurs or intelligence is received indicating some form of terrorist action targeting personnel or facilities is likely.”

There was no immediate confirmation of the threat level at RAF Fairford. US European Command said it would not discuss "specific force protection measures."

World

Residents Brace for a Possible Russian Hybrid Attack on Poland's Border with Ukraine

A bunker built of sandbags, which serves as shelter for border guards, stands next to the lanes at the Dorohusk-Jagodzin border crossing between Poland and Ukraine, in Dorohusk, Poland, on Sept. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Attila Husejnow)
A bunker built of sandbags, which serves as shelter for border guards, stands next to the lanes at the Dorohusk-Jagodzin border crossing between Poland and Ukraine, in Dorohusk, Poland, on Sept. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Attila Husejnow)
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Residents Brace for a Possible Russian Hybrid Attack on Poland's Border with Ukraine

A bunker built of sandbags, which serves as shelter for border guards, stands next to the lanes at the Dorohusk-Jagodzin border crossing between Poland and Ukraine, in Dorohusk, Poland, on Sept. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Attila Husejnow)
A bunker built of sandbags, which serves as shelter for border guards, stands next to the lanes at the Dorohusk-Jagodzin border crossing between Poland and Ukraine, in Dorohusk, Poland, on Sept. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Attila Husejnow)

Three times in one day, phones lit up across this Polish border community with a warning: A drone or a missile could cross from Ukraine, and residents should stay vigilant in case they might need to take cover.

Above the village of Dorohusk in eastern Poland, vapor trails cut across the pale blue sky and military helicopters rumbled overhead. Just 2 kilometers (1.24 miles) away, traffic at the border crossing into Ukraine was suspended three times, and staff were even evacuated once.

The alerts and disruptions on Thursday came as The Associated Press was visiting the village. They reflected a new reality along Poland's eastern frontier, where the war in Ukraine — now 4 1/2 years old — has felt increasingly close.

Russia isn’t at war with Poland, but over the past few years European leaders say it’s mounted a series of so-called hybrid attacks to pressure adversaries in the West and NATO that include sabotage, disinformation and cyberattacks. Poland is worried that the drones or missiles strikes could spill over from Ukraine, whether by accident or as part of a Russian strategy of ambiguous attacks.

The anxiety intensified after two Russian drones exploded on the Ukrainian side of the Dorohusk-Yahodyn crossing in the early hours of Sept. 13. The explosions could clearly be heard in Dorohusk.

“There is new restlessness and fear because you could hear those explosions very well on that night in our village,” said Wojciech Sawa, the Dorohusk mayor. “We had never had something like that before. This was the first time the sirens wailed.”

Poland is preparing for a more serious Russian hybrid attack Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk warned on Sept. 17 that Russia was planning hybrid strikes with drones or rockets on European countries supporting Ukraine, among them Poland, and regions bordering Ukraine would be especially vulnerable in the coming months. Other European leaders and intelligence services have shared his warnings that Russia is likely to step up its hybrid campaign.

In Dorohusk, people have lived in the shadow of the war for years. They watched Ukrainian refugees flee across the frontier in the early days of Russia’s 2022 invasion and, this July, had a Russian missile pass through airspace in eastern Poland before crashing some 90 kilometers (56 miles) inside the country.

But the recent drone attacks and the Polish government's efforts to prepare the population for further serious incidents have brought a new sense of apprehension — and also confusion — among locals.

Kids in border regions have to evacuate when sirens warn of air threat Jarosław Wójcicki, the Dorohusk school’s director, said staff, including the school psychologist, now discuss with students “practically every day” how to stay safe.

The school had to be evacuated once so far and Wójcicki showed the two rooms in the basement of the school building where the kids took cover. Windows had been boarded up to avoid glass shards hurting anyone in case of an explosion.

“The older children had no problem at all, without showing any particular emotion,” the director said. "You could see a little fear among the younger children, but they were well looked after by their teachers.”

Wójcicki is responsible for the safety of hundreds of children who travel from nearby villages to attend school in Dorohusk, and his voice wavered as he described the enormity of the task.

Poland's Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz visited the Dorohusk-Yahodyn border crossing on Sept. 22 and announced new air defense elements were being brought to the border region. He added that Patriot batteries were deployed in the two Polish regions bordering Ukraine, including the one where Dorohusk is located.

More work needs to be done on civil preparedness

While the government’s warnings are stark, even communities closest to Ukraine are still catching up on civil defense preparedness.

“We are at the beginning of the process of building civil resilience and the resilience of the state to threats," said Mirosław Sokal, head of resident safety for the city of Lublin, 90 km west of Dorohusk. “We have to remember that over the past 40 years we thought we would be living in peace.”

He said, given the lack of more solid infrastructure, Poles should respect one minimal rule when there's an air threat: get inside and put two walls between them and any window.

Sawa, the Dorohusk mayor, said villagers typically live in individual homes with basements and that is the obvious place to hide in case of air threats. “If I don’t have a basement myself, my neighbor likely does,” he said.

But people on the streets of Dorohusk seemed more confused about their options in case of a real attack.

“For now, I sleep well at night, so I don’t really hear it," said Irena Popek, a woman in her 80s. If planes are coming, she said, her basement was not an option as it was flooded. "I simply have nowhere to hide, and that’s it.”

Renata Pastuszo, a local shop employee, said she continued working through the recent siren alarm because it's better to keep a positive spirit in front of the Russian threat.

Krzysztof Rulka, another resident, complained that alerts were now coming too often, leaving people confused about their meaning.

“If someone told me that a drone was going to explode in the center of Dorohusk, then I would know what to do,” he said. "But this kind of confusion — there's an air attack somewhere in Ukraine — well, what am I supposed to do now? Run to Germany?”