2014 February: Mission Beach (Qld) Crop Dusting Accident

Helicopter crashes at Mission Beach banana farm

Wongaling Beach man Josh Bryant was conducting aerial spraying of bananas in a paddock off Campbell St, near Mission Beach’s main tourist area, about 6.15am when his Bell 206 JetRanger hit a tree and plunged to earth.

His workmate, who did not want to be named, was waiting beside a refuelling truck when he saw the chopper hit the tree and disintegrate as it fell to the ground.

Not knowing what he would be confronted with, the workmate rushed to the scene, calling triple zero as he went, and helped the dazed pilot stumble to safety as flames shot from the wreckage.

“The pilot’s very lucky to have escaped with minor injuries so far. He hasn’t got anything that’s life threatening,” said Sen-Constable Tony Cliffe, from Mission Beach Police.

Arriving at the banana farm soon afterwards, Coral Coast Helicopters owner Steve Shadforth was clearly shocked by the scene.

Visible from a distance, the severed limbs near the peak of the tree provided a tell-tale sign of what had just occurred while, beneath it, one of the helicopter’s skids sat beside a tank used for aerial spraying.

Twenty metres away the barely recognisable frame of the helicopter had come to rest in a paddock, partially covered by severed banana tree limbs.

The tail of the helicopter was snapped in two and the transparent nose bubble appeared to have been severed.

The cockpit control panel was nowhere to be seen.

“You don’t survive this (sort of crash) very often,” Mr Shadforth said.

“The fact that he’s breathing is very good.

“The aircraft obviously started disintegrating as soon as it hit that tree, so he was the proverbial rock once he hit that tree.”

Mr Shadforth, who lost a leg in a horrifying helicopter crash in similar circumstances in 2005 before making a triumphant return to the skies a year later, was amazed that Mr Bryant’s injuries weren’t more serious.

He suggested the banana trees may have played a role in cushioning the impact as the helicopter fell to the ground. “Helicopter accidents are amazing things sometimes,” he said.

“You look at an accident and some guy’s died and you go, ‘How the hell did he die?’

“Sometimes you look at (an accident scene) and go, ‘How didn’t he die?’

“There’s a blade going across his seat, a rotor blade’s going across his seat.

“As far as we know, he hasn’t got a broken bone.”

Sen-Constable Cliffe said police would be conducting further investigations into the crash, as would the Civil Aviation Safety Authority and the Australian Transport Safety Bureau.

https://www.cairnspost.com.au/helicopter-crashes-at-mission-beach-banana-farm/story-fnjput6h-1226832360362