An astonishing photo has revealed the wreckage of Australia’s first Boeing 737 crash.
The Boeing 737-3 with two people on board went down over the Fitzgerald River National Park Western Australia about 4.40pm on Monday (WST).
It burst into flames with thick, black smoke billowing into the sky.
A new photo has now revealed what little remained of the plane once the flames died down, with only the tail of the plane left intact.
The Boeing 737-3 with two people on board went down over the Fitzgerald River National Park Western Australia on Monday. Pictured is the wreckage afterwards
The Boeing 737 Fireliner is a civilian aircraft that had been converted for firefighting and operated by Coulson Aviation
The water bomber crashed in the forest between Ravensthorpe and Hopetoun.
Incredibly, the two pilots were able to free themselves from the wreckage and sustained just minor injuries, WA police told Daily Mail Australia.
WA Premier Mark McGowan declared their survival ‘a miracle’.
‘When I first heard of it I assumed the worst, but I’m advised the pilot and the crew have survived. That’s a miracle … I’m amazed,’ Mr McGowan said.
‘These planes, we contract them to do the work, the crews are often not west Australians, they are sometimes even international people. ‘How you manage to crash an aircraft like that, particularly in a forested area, and survive is remarkable.’
The two pilots on board were retrieved from the crash site by helicopter and airlifted to Ravensthorpe Airport,’ a police spokesperson said.
Upon landing the pair were conveyed to hospital by ambulance.
The plane is believed to have taken off from Bunbury, south of Perth, at 3.25pm in response to the bushfire.
The water bomber crashed in the forest between Ravensthorpe and Hopetoun and shocking photos revealed the devastation caused by the crash
An initial blaze on the national park’s eastern side was ignited by lightning around 10am with the second fire breaking out four hours later.
Around 30 Parks and Wildlife Service firefighters are trying to bring the fires under control.
With the fires posing a potential risk to lives and property residents living near the park have been told to maintain a watch and act status.
Air safety officers will attend the crash site to conduct an investigation.
Air crash investigators from the Australian Transport Safety Bureau are now planning to speak to the pilots on Tuesday before trying to work out why the aircraft crashed.
The Boeing 737 Fireliner is a civilian aircraft that had been converted for firefighting and operated by Coulson Aviation.
