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The ATSB has confirmed reports that the pilot who crashed a Robinson R44 into the roof of a Cairns hotel at 1:45am had consumed a “significant amount of alcohol” before taking off.
In an extraordinary investigation published on Thursday, the safety body also revealed Blake Wilson “did not hold the appropriate endorsements to fly at night” and had flown “well below” the 1,000ft minimum height required for built-up areas.
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The incident, which took place in August, killed the 23-year-old and led to around 300 people being evacuated from the Double Tree by Hilton hotel. Remarkably, nobody else was hurt other than an elderly couple in a nearby room who were taken to hospital with minor injuries.
The report reveals Wilson gained access to the premises of helicopter operator Nautilus Aviation after entering a code into a security door keypad and then to the hangar and the helicopter. While he did hold a valid licence for flying commercial helicopters, he was employed by Nautilus as a ground handler and was not approved to fly the operator’s helicopters.
“Prior to the flight, the pilot had been socialising with friends at various venues in Cairns, where they [Wilson] had been consuming alcohol, the report details,” the ATSB said.
“They had returned to their apartment around 11 pm, with CCTV footage showing them driving away from the apartment complex at 1:09 am.
“CCTV footage from the operator’s hangar showed the pilot moving the helicopter outside onto a helipad just after 1:30 am.”
GPS and air traffic control radar data showed that the helicopter departed Cairns Airport shortly before 1:47 am, while CCTV footage showed that the helicopter’s strobe lights were turned off by the pilot.
“After taking off, the helicopter headed south towards the Cairns city centre, flying over the pilot’s apartment building and then tracking to the northern end of the Cairns wharf complex, where it completed an orbit before heading north towards the marina and continuing along the coastline.
“After crossing the coastline and flying over the pilot’s apartment a second time, the helicopter circled back towards the foreshore, following it for about 1km.
“Throughout the flight, the helicopter’s altitude did not exceed 500ft.”
Two security cameras then recorded “very brief portions of the final part of the flight” that showed the helicopter pitching up, then almost immediately descending steeply before colliding into the roof of the hotel at about 1:51am.
Wreckage distribution and impact marks indicate that the helicopter was “inverted at impact”.
“Most of the helicopter came to rest on the hotel roof and was destroyed by impact forces and a fuel-fed post-impact fire,” the ATSB said.
“The pilot was fatally injured. Parts of the main rotor blade were found in the hotel rooms below the accident site, while the helicopter’s instrument panel, main rotor head and most of the main rotor blades were found within the hotel grounds.
“A portion of the same main rotor blade that struck the hotel windows was found in parkland across the road.”
The ATSB said the nature of the event meant it was unlikely broader safety issues or lessons would be uncovered.
“The ATSB primarily investigates to identify industry systemic safety issues and to then influence the adoption of targeted actions to reduce future risk,” said Angus Mitchell, the ATSB’s chief commissioner.
“Our final report published today provides assurance to the Cairns community and the aviation industry that after gathering and analysing the available evidence, there are unlikely to be broader transport safety issues that require addressing to reduce future risk arising from this tragic accident.”
Nautilus Aviation previously revealed the flight was “unauthorised”, while newspaper reports later suggested the pilot was “put to bed” after a night of drinking.
