A woman has described being trapped under 'hot machinery' after the Sea World helicopter she was travelling in collided with another over the Gold Coast, killing four people. Winnie De Silva gave evidence on Monday at the start of the inquest into one of Australia's worst air disasters, reliving the moment the two choppers collided above the Gold Coast Broadwater in January 2023.
De Silva told coroner Carol Lee in Brisbane that she initially dismissed a noise that turned out to be the collision. 'I thought a bird could have hit us somehow. I heard that bang. I wasn't very worried as I thought the pilot would take care of it,' she said via video link. 'When the shaking started happening, things started falling on our faces. Then I realised it was not going to be safe.'
Shocking footage of the collision was shown to the inquest, revealing that just 25 seconds after the second helicopter took off, it collided with another Sea World-branded chopper at an altitude under 40 metres. Counsel assisting Ian Harvey said, 'It's inescapable that neither pilot saw the other pilot's helicopter. How could that happen? They were two experienced pilots in modern, relatively sophisticated helicopters.'
The pilot of one helicopter, Ashley Jenkinson, 40, died along with British newlyweds Ronald and Diane Hughes, aged 65 and 67, and Sydney woman Vanessa Tadros, 36. Nine other people were injured. The inquest will examine 11 critical issues surrounding the disaster.
