Widow of chopper crash victim sent fine notice for late husband

The widow of the helicopter pilot killed during a horror crash near SeaWorld has received a devastating letter in the mail.

The widow of the pilot killed during the SeaWorld chopper crash received a fine notice addressed to her husband – seven days after he was killed.

Ash Jenkinson died alongside British newlyweds Ron and Diane Hughes and Sydney mother Vanessa Tadros when the helicopter he was flying collided with another mid-air on January 2.

Police will allege a 33-year-old woman used the personal details in Ash Jenkinson’s obituary to pin a driving offence on the late pilot, The Courier Mail reports.

The widow of Sea World helicopter pilot Ash Jenkinson allegedly received a fine notice for her late husband in the mail. Picture: Supplied

He was killed weeks earlier in a horror chopper crash near the Gold Coast theme park. Picture: Libby Lund-McDonald

The woman was allegedly caught using her mobile phone while driving in December.

The fine notice was sent out three weeks later – a week after Mr Jenkinson had been killed in the horror crash.

His widow was understandably shocked when the fine notice arrived in the mail bearing the name of her late husband attached to an unfamiliar car.

The 33-year-old woman has since been issued a notice to appear in court for two fraud offences.

She will appear at the Beenleigh Magistrates Court on April 6.

The hero pilot

The beloved pilot was hailed as a hero in the days after the crash with tributes flooding in for a man who selflessly gave his time to support people in need.

During the 2022 flood crisis in NSW and Queensland, Mr Jenkinson volunteered his time carrying essential supplies to people whose homes and lives were devastated during the event.

He was farewelled by hundreds in a heartbreaking funeral in which his fiancee Kosha Richardson-Johnson said the couple always said goodbye “like it was the last day, every day, just in case it was”.

“My heart is broken with the loss of my present and future with this man,” she said.

He is survived by his one-year-old son Kayden.

SeaWorld helicopter crash

The families of the crash victims and survivors received some long-awaited answers earlier this month when a preliminary investigation into the cause of the crash was released by the The Australian Transport Safety Bureau.

The loved ones could do nothing but watch as the five-minute joyride helicopter turned into tragedy within seconds.

Chief commissioner of ATSB Angus Mitchell said the pilot of the helicopter coming into land did not recall a taxi call to announce an intention to take off from the other pilot over the radio.

“This does not necessarily mean that a taxi call was not made, and the ATSB investigation will undertake a detailed analysis of the nature of the radio calls made,” Mr Mitchell noted.

Investigators revealed in the days after the crash that the rotor blade of the taking off helicopter- piloted by Ash Jenkinson - smashed into the front window of the landing helicopter, causing it’s blades to rip out and sending the helicopter plummeting to the ground.

There were three survivors inside that helicopter.

In the landing helicopter, the pilot miraculously managed to land with out clear vision through the front windscreen - saving all four passengers on board.

Originally published as Widow of chopper crash victim sent fine notice for late husband