The second accident occurred when a Sikorsky HH-3E Jolly Green Giant rescue helicopter of the 67th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron United States Air Force (USAF), from the Iceland Defense Force at Naval Air Station Keflavik, crashed with three of the injured from the previous accident, two Icelandic doctors and a five-man U.S. crew shortly after takeoff from the first crash site.

[2][3] On 18 December 1979, a Cessna 172 aircraft, with registration number TF-EKK, took off from Reykjavík Airport with a French pilot, a New Zealander and two Finnish girls who worked as physiotherapists in Reykjalundur, on a sight-seeing tour around Gullfoss and Þingvellir.

A helicopter from the Defense Force at Keflavík Airport that happened to be on a training mission nearby went to the scene and transported the New Zealander to Reykjavík, while leaving two crew members to attend to the other occupants, whose injuries were more severe, and wait for the Icelandic SAR teams who arrived shortly later.

After taking two doctors from Borgarspítalinn, fuel and offloading two of its crewmembers, the helicopter returned to the scene of the accident to pick up the Finns and the French pilot.

[3] Rescuers, including photographer Ragnar Axelsson,[5][6] rushed to the second crash site and were confronted with the mangled remains of the helicopter and Kerosene fumes filling the air.