A pilot was killed, and others were injured Monday when a helicopter crashed into the roof of an Australian hotel during an unauthorized flight. The pilot, identified as 23-year-old Blake Wilson of New Zealand, was reportedly not authorized to fly the company's helicopters in Australia.
A tourist helicopter crashed into the roof of an Australian hotel early Monday, killing the pilot and injuring others, authorities said.
The helicopter, operated by Nautilus Aviation, had taken off from an airport in the Australian city of Cairns without authorization. The company confirmed that the pilot, 23-year-old Blake Wilson of New Zealand, was one of its employees but had not previously flown in Australia.
Unauthorized Helicopter Crash into Australian Hotel Kills Pilot
Wilson was a member of the company's ground crew and held a helicopter pilot's license in New Zealand, but he was not authorized to fly the company's helicopters in Australia, Nautilus Aviation said. He had worked at the company for four months and was recently promoted to a ground crew job at another of the company's bases.
The flight was unauthorized, and the helicopter was "misappropriated," the company added.
Unauthorized Helicopter Crash into Australian Hotel Kills Pilot
The crash, which occurred early Monday morning, prompted the evacuation of hundreds of people from the building as flames engulfed the aircraft. A couple staying at the hotel was hospitalized for smoke inhalation and later discharged. No one else on the ground was hurt.
Cairns Airport CEO Richard Barker said initial findings of a review Monday showed "no compromise of the airport security program or processes." The airport operates under "a federally approved, multi-layered transport security program," Barker said.
Unauthorized Helicopter Crash into Australian Hotel Kills Pilot
The crash took place in a busy tourist district of Cairns, a tropical city of 150,000 people in far north Queensland, where it is peak season for holidaymakers. Witnesses told local news outlets that the crash sounded like a bomb exploding.
Smoke billowed and flames rose from the roof of the DoubleTree Hilton, and one of the helicopter's rotor blades landed in the hotel pool, the Australian broadcaster ABC reported. The hotel remains cordoned off while its structural integrity is being examined.
Queensland Police Service Acting Chief Superintendent Shane Holmes said authorities were working to determine how the pilot gained access to the helicopter and why it was flown without authorization.
The crash is under investigation by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau, which is expected to release a preliminary report within the next six to eight weeks.
Nautilus Aviation said it was cooperating fully with the investigation and expressed its deepest sympathies to the pilot's family and friends.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with the passengers and crew who were involved in this tragic event," the company said in a statement.
