It's been nearly three years since two Sea World helicopters crashed into each other in Australia. That deadly January 2023 crash killed four people and left survivors with plenty of trauma.
Now, an inquest into the mid-air crash has survivors of the Sea World collision speaking out, accordin got the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). Eight people were hospitalized in the aftermath of the crash.
A Sea World Helicopter taking off crashed into another trying to land. The crash killed chief pilot Ashley Jenkinson, Sydney native Vanessa Tadros, and U.K. couple Ron and Diane Hughes. Winnie De Silva, a passenger, described being on the helicopter with her son.
"Once I heard the bang, and shaking started happening, and things started falling on our faces, that's when I realized we weren't going to be safe ... the shaking was just terrible," she told the court, per ABC. "When it started shaking, I was so worried, I was holding my son. It was steaming in a way that was so uncomfortable, I just remember closing my eyes and telling my son to do the same."
Sea World Helicopter Crash
The next thing she knew, the helicopter had crashed, and she was trapped underneath it.
"There was hot [machinery] on my body, and I was screaming for help," she said. Fortunately, Acting Senior Sergeant Justin Dunn from Gold Coast Water Police managed to rescue her.
Meanwhile, Jessie Maya, another passenger on the Sea World helicopters, is still traumatized.
"It was a big blur for me, once the collision hit, I really don't know much ... I don't know how I got out of the helicopter," he said.
"The fundamental question is how could that situation unfold between two highly experienced pilots?" counsel assisting Ian Harvey told the court. However, a 2023 report from the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) revealed that a lack of communication may have caused the crash. They concluded that a faulty radio antenna prevented the pilots from communicating with each other.
This led to a deadly mid-air collision.
