Pilot who survived Sea World helicopter crash reveals what happened before crash

One pilot “did not recall” his fellow pilot making a standard taxi call to say he was taking off before their helicopters collided and crashed, killing four people and injuring nine others on the Gold Coast.

Plane crash investigators say pilot Michael James told them he saw five passengers boarding the second helicopter at a helipad near Sea World when he arrived on Jan. 2 to board his plane with six passengers at a different helipad in to land near.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau says the pilot thought the second helicopter was passing behind his plane and does not recall the other pilot radioing him that he was taking off.

“They did not recall that the XKQ pilot made a standard roll call to announce his intention to depart,” the ATSB’s preliminary report on the crash said.

A third helicopter pilot in the area at the time recalled hearing the incoming call from Mr James but did not recall hearing a taxi call from the other pilot taking off.

A fourth helicopter pilot could not recall hearing calls from either of the two pilots involved in the crash before their planes collided.

Pilot Ashley Jenkinson (pictured), 40, and his passengers, including British couple Ron and Diane Hughes, 65 and 57, and Sydney’s mother Vanessa Tadros, 36, were among the dead

Three pilots do not remember a colleague radioing that he had taken off before his plane collided with another helicopter, killing four people

However, ATSB Commissioner Angus Mitchell said evidence “does not necessarily mean that a taxi call was not made” when the pilot took off, and investigators would be examining the radio calls leading up to the crash.

According to the report, Mr James also told the ATSB he did not see the second helicopter take off from the helipad.

“While video footage captured by passengers in both helicopters using mobile phones included images of the other helicopter, it does not mean that the other helicopter was visible to either pilot,” Mr Mitchell said.

“The investigation will look closely at the issues both pilots faced when they saw the other helicopter.”

Four people died and nine people were injured, including three seriously, when the two planes collided in mid-air and crashed into the sandbar.

Pilot Ashley Jenkinson, 40, and his passengers, including British couple Ron and Diane Hughes, 65 and 57, and Sydney mother Vanessa Tadros, 36, were among the dead.

Sea World pilot Michael James was able to land his plane safely after the collision

Ms Tadros’ son Nicholas, 10, has been in hospital since the accident and his leg was amputated from the knee down last week.

Victorian mother Winnie de Silva, 33, and her nine-year-old son Leon are recovering from injuries sustained in the accident.

The second helicopter’s pilot, Mr James, managed to land his plane safely, but he and two of his passengers were injured by flying glass when the windshield shattered.

The injured are New Zealanders Elmarie Steenberg and Marle Swart who were on holiday with their husbands Riaan Steenberg and Edward Swart.

The full ATSB report on the collision by the Air Transport Safety Bureau is not expected until at least September 2024.

Source: | This article originally belongs to Dailymail.co.uk