Fatal chopper crash inquest to probe safety, training

Pilot training and safety systems will be among a range of issues to be examined in the investigation into one of Australia’s worst air disasters.

Four people died when two Sea World helicopters collided over the Gold Coast Broadwater during the busy summer holiday season in January 2023.

Almost three years later, Coroner Carol Lee is set to investigate 11 critical issues surrounding the devastating crash in a 10-day inquest set to begin in Brisbane on Monday.

The criminal investigation came just months after the security bureau’s damning report on a mid-air collision between two joyful flying helicopters.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau’s final report in April explained that a number of factors led to the crash, including limited visibility, failed radio transmissions and a lack of safety protocols.

In the terrible accident, pilot Ashley Jenkinson (40), British newlyweds Ronald and Diane Hughes (65 and 67 years old) and Sydney mother Vanessa Tadros (36) died and nine people were injured.

The investigation will examine how the accident occurred and the most likely cause, and examine a number of issues.

These include whether safety management systems covering both ground and air crew are adequate and appropriate.

Other issues to be examined include the adequacy of pilot training, the availability and effectiveness of radio equipment, and Sea World’s airborne communications systems.

One of the issues highlighted in the police bureau’s report was the antenna malfunction in a helicopter’s radio that had been present for days.

The report stated that one of the pilots tried to call the other helicopter to inform it that it would depart, but due to the malfunction, the helicopter was never handed over to the other helicopter.