Helicopters collide outside Sea World

[REGIE]

Very odd thing to happen with all the modern tech these days.  I feel for all the people impacted and hope no too many fake rumours or should’ve/ shouldn’t of things come up 

5 minutes ago, themagician said:

The Sea World Helicopters website has been taken down 

Do you think this will be the last time in a few years seaworld will run helicopters ? Heaps of new rules and protocols will most likely come up

[Park Addict 93]

I would say it’s possible they have reached their bandwidth limit.

[Park Addict 93]

[Moderator]

As stated above posts of speculation may be removed temporarily or permanently whilst this is a fresh situation. In general anything pointing towards a possible cause of the accident is unlikely to be left up for the time being.

There are likely suitable aviation orientated forums for such discussion.

[themagician]

An industry expert says the aviation watchdog should have identified the faulty radio that contributed to a fatal mid-air helicopter crash at Sea World on the Gold Coast.

In a report released on Wednesday, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) found a litany of safety issues led to the joy-flight collision, which claimed the lives of four people and injured nine others on the Southport Broadwater in 2023.

Sea World Helicopters chief pilot Ashley Jenkinson, New South Wales woman Vanessa Tadros, and UK couple Diane and Ron Hughes died when the two choppers crashed into each other as one took off and the other came in to land.

Three passengers — including two children — were critically injured in the tragedy.

The ATSB report found a faulty radio antenna in part led to the crash, along with the placement of a new helipad, which created a "conflict point" for the aircraft.

Investigators found it was likely Mr Jenkinson made a taxiing radio call to incoming pilot Mr James but it was unclear if it was ever received.

The report found the radio system in the helicopter being flown by Mr Jenkinson had "defects that limited transmission range", and "it is almost certain that a taxi call was not successfully broadcast".

The report said pilots largely relied on a "see-and-avoid" strategy to judge the distance between the helicopters.

'Shouldn't have operated with faulty radio'

Neil Hansford, who is an international aviation consultant, said issues with the radio transmission should have been enough to ground the operation.

Neil Hansford says radios should always be sending and receiving signals.(ABC News)

"It's a motherhood issue that the radios are sending and receiving, let alone in a tight, high-volume, short turn-around operation like this," he said.

"If anything should have been working with a full function, it's the radios and if the radios aren't working, it shouldn't have operated."

According to the ATSB report, Sea World Helicopters ran high-frequency, low-duration flights.

In the two weeks prior to the accident, the route where the collision occurred was traversed more than 200 times, the report said.

Mr Hansford said issues with the radio should have been identified by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) in routine inspections of the joy-flight operator.

"CASA has an absolute responsibility, at law and by regulation, that all of its operators throughout Australia operate to the approved operating procedures," he said.

"In the end, CASA allowed this operation. They had a responsibility to supervise it and there was an activity that was not compliant because the radio calling was deficient."

In a statement, Sea World Helicopters said the accident was a "devastating tragedy".

"Our deepest sympathies rest with the victims, their families, and our staff who have been profoundly impacted by it," the operator said.

The company acknowledged the ATSB's recommendations and said it would "respond within the allocated time frame".

"The accident occurred within a compliant and professionally-managed organisation, which exceeded the minimum regulatory requirements of the general aviation sector," the statement said.

"Our company maintains robust safety systems, dedicated support staff and rigorous oversight protocols to uphold the highest standards of aviation safety."

It said the operator remained "committed to consistently evolving our safety measures".

CASA regularly audits Sea World

A CASA spokesperson said in a statement it welcomed the ATSB report and "will review it in detail for potential safety improvements that can be adopted in addition to action we've already taken".

It said action already taken included regulatory, oversight and compliance monitoring of Sea World Helicopters.

"As part of that oversight, CASA conducts routine operational surveillance to ensure the company is complying with regulatory requirements and company procedures, the last audit being completed in October 2024," the spokesperson said.

"CASA is satisfied Sea World Helicopters is complying with relevant regulations to conduct passenger flights."

CASA also conducted a review of the airspace around Southport following the tragedy, which "found it was appropriate and safe".

There has also been an update to passenger safety information regarding the fitting of multi-point restraints when fitted with constant wear life jackets, the CASA spokesperson said.

https://amp.abc.net.au/article/105157454