Helicopter that crashed on hotel roof in Australia may have been stolen | Video
The chopper crashed into the roof of DoubleTree by Hilton (Credits: Queensland Ambulance Service)
The helicopter that crashed into a hotel roof in the northern Queensland city of Cairns in Australia on Monday (Aug 12), killing the pilot, may have been stolen, according to a report innews.com.au.
The helicopter, belonging toNautilus Aviation was reportedly stolen from the Cairns airport. The airline company's chief executive officer Aaron Finn said the chopper was taken from the airport early in the morning.
“Nautilus Aviation are working closely with the Queensland Police Service, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau and other authorities as they investigate the unauthorised use of one of our helicopters in the early hours of this morning,” the airline said.
“As we continue to fully support the ongoing investigation, we will not be making further comments at this time.”
Notably, the helicopter crashed into the DoubleTree by Hilton hotel at around 1:50 am local time, sparking a fire and forcing the evacuation of hundreds of guests staying at the facility.
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Australian Transport Safety Bureau Chief Commissioner Angus Mitchell confirmed that authorities will be probing every angle, including the allegations that the helicopter was stolen.
“At this stage, we’ll treat the investigation like we do any other. We’ll certainly gather what we can from the scene, from the operator, and once we do have an identity of the personnel involved, then we’ll start looking a little bit more closely on all the things that may have contributed to what unfolded last night,” saidMitchell.
“We want to understand what the helicopter was equipped with but also potentially what the helicopter was doing at the time and any nature of the flight.
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Queensland Fire Gold Coast zone commander Superintendent Greg Tomlinson also confirmed that the helicopter was taken off from a general hanger at the Cairns Airport but refused to further divulge any details.
Who was the pilot?
The identity of the pilot remains unknown at this stage. Nautilus Aviation has confirmed that all of its staff was already accounted for the day and had been given a day off following the incident.
According to reports, a fire immediately broke out after the helicopter crashed. Paramedics only arrived at the scene after 2 am and assessed a male patient with life-threatening injuries.
Another male in his 80s and a woman in her 70s were treated and taken to Cairns Hospital in a stable condition.
(With inputs from agencies)