Pilot who survived SeaWorld helicopter crash reveals what happened before crash

The pilot “did not remember” his fellow pilots making a standard taxi call and taking off before the helicopter collided and crashed, killing four and injuring nine. gold coast.

Air crash investigators say pilot Michael James crashed 5 at a heliport near SeaWorld on January 2 while he was about to land his plane with six passengers on another nearby heliport. He said he saw two passengers boarding the second helicopter.

According to the Australian Transport Safety Authority, the pilot thought a second helicopter would pass behind his aircraft and did not remember being told by another pilot that it had taken off on the radio.

“They didn’t remember the XKQ pilot making the standard ‘taxi’ call announcing his intention to depart,” said a preliminary ATSB report on the crash.

A third helicopter pilot in the area at the time recalled hearing an inbound call from Mr. James, but did not recall hearing a taxi call from another pilot who had taken off.

A fourth helicopter pilot could not recall receiving a phone call from either of the two pilots involved in the crash before the plane crashed.

However, ATSB Commissioner Angus Mitchell said the evidence “did not necessarily imply that no taxi calls were made” by the pilot who took off, and investigators found no radio calls leading up to the crash. investigated.

James also reportedly told the ATSB that he did not see a second helicopter take off from the helipad.

“Video footage taken by mobile phone passengers of both helicopters contained images of the other helicopter, but this does not mean that either pilot could see the other helicopter.” said Mitchell.

“The study will take a closer look at the problems both pilots faced in viewing other helicopters.”

The findings are part of a preliminary report on the disaster led by Mitchell.

“We’re looking at everything that could have contributed, whether it’s equipment, procedures, individual behavior… they’re all part of[the investigation]. will be,’ he said.

The operator “was aware of a problem with the transponder on[James’]aircraft,” the report said.

“The transponder (on the chopper piloted by Mr. James) was not transmitting secondary surveillance radar responses detected by the radar surveillance equipment for the accident flight or previous flights,” the report said.

“There was an ongoing effort to diagnose and address transponder issues.”

According to reports, both choppers were equipped with traffic collision avoidance systems, but they were not fully integrated into either aircraft.

I have found that it only provides an audible warning to the pilot rather than visual information.

Two planes collided mid-air and slammed into a sandbar, killing four and injuring nine, three of whom were seriously injured.

Pilot Ashley Jenkinson, 40, and his passengers, including British couple Ron and Diane Hughes, 65 and 57, and Sydney’s mother, Vanessa Tadros, 36, died.

Tadros’ son Nicolas, 10, has undergone surgery in hospital since the accident and was amputated below the knee last week.

Victorian mother Winnie De Silva, 33, and her 9-year-old son Leon are recovering from injuries sustained in the crash.

The pilot of the second chopper, James, was able to land the plane safely, but he and two passengers were injured by flying glass when the windshield shattered.

The injured were New Zealand women Elmarie Steenberg and Merle Swart, who were vacationing with their husbands Liane Steenberg and Edward Swart.

A full ATSB report on the crash by the Air Transport Security Administration is not expected until at least September 2024.