Horror moment helicopters collide near Sea World caught on camera
Chilling footage has emerged of a mid-air collision between two helicopters near Sea World which killed four people. It comes as Qld’s top cop promised ‘meticulous investigations’. WARNING: GRAPHIC
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Chilling footage has emerged of a horror mid-air collision between two helicopters near a Gold Coast theme park that left four people dead and three others injured.
The helicopters – joy flights operating out of Sea World at Main Beach, collided in the air over the Gold Coast Broadwater about 2pm on Monday, leaving pilot Ash Jenkinson and three passengers from one chopper dead as hundreds of visitors to the packed theme park watched on in terror.
Two of the people killed were British citizens – Ron (65) and Diane (57) Hughes – who were in Queensland on holiday.
The couple, from Liverpool, were married in 2021.
The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office spokesperson said it was in contact with local police after the tragedy on Monday afternoon.
“We are supporting the family of two British nationals who died in Australia and are in contact with local authorities,” the spokesperson said.
The other victim was 36-year-old Vanessa Tadros (Geagea) from Glenmore Park, NSW.
Her 10-year-old son Nicholas, also from Glenmore Park, remains in a critical condition in Gold Coast University Hospital.
Family said Nicholas was undergoing his fourth surgery since the accident on Tuesday morning.
Two other passengers in that helicopter were rushed to hospital with critical injuries.
A 33-year-old woman from Geelong West, Victoria, is also in Gold Coast University Hospital in a critical but stable condition, while her nine-year-old son is in Queensland Children’s Hospital in a stable condition.
The third survivor of the doomed chopper flight, the 10-year-old son of NSW victim Vanessa Tadros, also remains in a critical condition.
Speaking at the scene on Tuesday afternoon, Deputy Premier Steven Miles said Queensland had suffered many tragedies this festive season.
“Queensland and Queenslanders are grieving through yet another tragedy. I join with the Premier in sending my deepest sympathies to all of those involved,” he said.
“The Premier has asked me to ensure that every assistance possible is offered.
“Queensland has seen so much tragedy lately - there are people who have been directly impacted who are experiencing so much pain and members of the public who witnessed the incident yesterday will also be affected.
“It’s time for us to do what qlders do best and that’s to support each other, to help each other.”
“The Department of Community has already been working with the Gold Coast City Council “We have activated our community recovery plans, you can see there are community recovery officers as well as staff from the Red Cross here today and available to support those affected and members of the public.”
Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll said there were “incredibly confronting scenes” around the accident.
She implored any members of the public with video, CCTV or witness accounts to come forward.
Asked about possible charges in relation to the crash she said it would form part of the investigation.
“That may be the case, but please be very mindful it is early days, we have a lot of work to do,” she said,
“These are meticulous investigations.”
She said the past few weeks had been incredibly difficult with many deaths and tragedies.
A man whose wife and stepson were critically injured in the disaster has made an impassioned plea for help as they recover in hospital.
Winnie de Silva, and her son Leon, 9, were two of the three survivors of the fatal flight and remain in hospital, listed as critical but stable.
Neil de Silva has started a GoFundMe campaign to raise money to cope with the ordeal.
“Thankfully they are both alive but have a lot of surgery ahead of them which means the family will need to stay here on the Gold Coast and I won’t be able to return to work,” he wrote on the fundraiser’s page.
“I’m hoping you can help us out with a small donation to keep us on our feet while Winnie and Leon recover.
“Any help would be greatly appreciated.”
A Go Fund Me page has also been set up for the family of pilot Ash Jenkinson.
On Tuesday morning, authorities were racing a rising tide to remove the helicopters from a sandbank.
Australian Transport and Safety Bureau Chief Commissioner Angus Mitchell said they would be moved to a better location for “painstaking” investigations.
“What we do need to know is what was occurring in the cockpits at that time … what were the processes in place that are designed to protect helicopters in this situation,” he said.
Mr Mitchell said investigators would leave no stones unturned.
“(We will investigate) the weather at the time, to the tasking, to how long the helicopters had been operating that day, to how long the pilots had been flying, there’s a lot that goes into it,” he said.
“But exactly why this occurred, what was the range of visibility from both the pilots, what was happening inside the cabins at the time, they’re the things that will help us here … but it’s still very early stages in the investigating to start speculating.”
Mr Mitchell said it was “remarkable” the second chopper managed to land safely.
He said the helicopter which crashed had only been in the air for 20 seconds, but fell from a significant height.
“It does appear that the main rotor blade of the helicopter taking off has collided with the front cockpit of the descending helicopter on the left hand side,” he said.
“But that in itself has led to the main rotor and the gearbox separate from that helicopter which has meant tragically it had no lift and it has fallen heavily to the ground.”
The pilot of the second helicopter, which had five passengers on board, miraculously managed to land on a sand bank in the middle of the Broadwater, with everyone aboard able to walk away.
The passengers included a 27-year-old Western Australia woman and two families from New Zealand who were travelling together – a 44-year-old man and 43-year-old woman from one family and a 48-year-old man and 45-year-old woman from the other.
A makeshift shrine to the victims has set up by the Gold Coast City Council.
The council is encouraging the public grieving over the tragedy to leave flowers at the Broadwater Parklands, just south of the Southport Pier, opposite where the crash happened.
“Yesterday’s tragedy on the Broadwater has understandably resulted in an outpouring of grief across our community,” a council spokesperson said.
“The City of Gold Coast encourages anyone wishing to place floral tributes to do so at an area allocated.”
A witness to the crash described that pilot’s effort to safely land, amid a cockpit of shattered glass and twisted metal, as “medal worthy”.
It was the Gold Coast’s worst helicopter disaster since seven people died in a joy flight off South Stradbroke Island in 1991.
Video footage of the lead-up to the crash shows one helicopter taking off as the other approaches its landing pad and features a young boy’s voice asking in a worried voice: “Are they gonna crash?”
Moments later, they did.
Mr Jenkinson was the chief pilot of Sea World Helicopters, an operation run out of the theme park by Professional Helicopter Services.
An experienced aviator, he had been the outfit’s chief pilot for more than three years and leaves behind a young family.
The boss of Sea World Helicopters says he was devastated and was working with authorities to determine the cause of the horror crash
John Orr-Campbell who operates the joy flight business independently of Sea World through his Victorian-based company Professional Helicopter Services Pty Ltd, told The Courier-Mail he wanted to pass on his condolences “to all who were hurt or suffered a loss”.
The tragedy claimed the life of respected pilot Ash Jenkinson and three passengers.
Mr Orr-Campbell said the other helicopter pilot – who miraculously managed to land his aircraft on a sandbank after the mid-air collision over the Southport Broadwater, saving everyone on board – was recovering in hospital.
“I can tell you he’s safe – he’s in hospital, he’s got injuries but he’s okay,” he said.
Mr Orr-Campbell said all Gold Coast operations had been suspended as investigations into the crash continued.
He said he could not comment further at this stage but the company was preparing a formal statement.
Sea World Helicopters was part of a consortium developing plans for an electric air taxi fleet ahead of the 2032 Brisbane Olympics.
Tor Kumpel watched the tragedy unfold, calling it “horrific”, while Emma Burch described hearing a “massive bang”.
“They clipped each other – there was a massive bang heard right through the Broadwater tourist park then the swooshing as the one that lost control hit the water and broke apart,” she said.
“It’s just awful. Everyone is in shock.”
An armada of boats were seen rushing to the scene in the immediate aftermath with police praising the members of the public who desperately tried to help.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk described it as “an unthinkable tragedy” and sent condolences to families involved.
“What has happened on the Gold Coast today is an unthinkable tragedy,” she said.
“My deepest sympathies are with each of the families and everyone affected by this terrible accident.”
Friends of Mr Jenkinson took to social media to pay tribute to a man described as “a true legend”.
“You were an easy man to love brother from day dot! My thoughts and prayers are with your family,” wrote one friend on Facebook.
“You were such a legend Ash. You helped so many people and have done so much good in your life. My heart goes out to your beautiful wife and son.” wrote another.
In a statement, a spokesperson for Sea World Helicopters expressed “shock and deepest sympathy for those involved” in the terrible tragedy.
“We and the entire flying community are devastated by what has happened and our sincere condolences go to all those involved and especially the loved ones and family of the deceased,” the statement said.
“We are co-operating with all the authorities including the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) and the Queensland Police.
“As it is now a police investigation we cannot provide any further information at this stage.”
Acting Inspector Gary Worrell from the southeastern police region paid tribute to the people who rushed to help amid the chaos on the water.
“I would like to thank all the members of the public that attended today, the critical scene, it is a difficult scene,” he said.
Queensland Ambulance Service senior operations supervisor Jayney Shearman said it was a “traumatic” scene.
“Our thoughts and condolences go out to the families of all those involved,” she said.
On Monday afternoon, Mr Mitchell from the ATSB confirmed an investigation has been launched.
“Transport safety investigators with experience in helicopter operations, maintenance and survivability engineering are deploying from the ATSB’s Brisbane and Canberra offices and were expected to begin arriving at the accident site from Monday afternoon,” he said.
“During the evidence gathering phase of the investigation, ATSB investigators will examine the wreckage and map the accident site. Investigators will also recover any relevant components for further examination at the ATSB’s technical facilities in Canberra, gather any available recorded data for analysis, and interview witnesses and other involved parties.
“The ATSB asks anyone who may have seen the collision, or who witnessed the helicopters in any phase of their flights, or who may have footage of any kind, to make contact via witness@atsb.gov.au at their earliest opportunity.”
Mr Mitchell said the ATSB would likely publish a preliminary report detailing basic information gathered during the investigation in about six to eight weeks.
“A final report will be published at the conclusion of the investigation, however, should any critical safety issues be identified at any stage during the course of the investigation, the ATSB will immediately notify relevant parties so appropriate safety action can be taken,” he said.
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Originally published as Horror moment helicopters collide near Sea World caught on camera
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