A pilot involved in a catastrophic mid-air helicopter collision that killed four people on Australia's Gold Coast was witnessed taking cocaine at a party the night before the fatal incident, a coronial inquest has been told.
New Year's Eve Party Revelations
The inquest into the tragedy heard evidence that Ashley Jenkinson, 40, was seen inhaling a white powder, believed to be cocaine, at a New Year's Eve celebration on 31 December 2022. The crash occurred just two days later, on 2 January 2023, outside the popular Sea World theme park.
Stephen Gill, an industrial oil salesman and acquaintance of the pilot, testified that he entered a shed at the party around 8pm and observed a "white powder substance" on a toolbox. He told the court that Jenkinson used cocaine "four or five times a year," typically consuming "three or four lines throughout the night."
Another witness, Ross Meadows, a digital marketing director and close friend of Jenkinson, said he saw the pilot inhaling a single line of a white substance in the same shed at approximately 9pm. "I saw a white substance. I assumed it was cocaine," Meadows stated, adding that he remarked at the time, "Nothing good comes from that shit."
The Fatal Collision and Its Victims
Jenkinson was piloting one of two Sea World helicopters that collided mid-air in a devastating accident viewed by horrified tourists. He died alongside three passengers: British newlyweds Ronald and Diane Hughes, aged 65 and 67, and 36-year-old Sydney mother Vanessa Tadros.
Vanessa Tadros's son, Nicholas, was just 10 years old when he survived the crash but lost a leg. He attended the inquest in Brisbane this week with his father, Simon Tadros.
A subsequent autopsy confirmed that Ashley Jenkinson tested positive for cocaine. However, an initial investigation by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) found he was "unlikely to have been directly affected by the drug at the time of the accident."
Questions Over Safety and Responsibility
Under cross-examination from barrister Gerard Mullins KC, representing the Tadros family, Ross Meadows acknowledged he knew cocaine use was incompatible with flying. When asked why he did not report his friend's illegal drug use to aviation authorities or the helicopter tour company, Meadows replied, "No," and added, "He was his own person. I'm not responsible."
Meadows, whose company had handled social media marketing for Sea World Helicopters, described Jenkinson as a "phenomenal pilot" and a "very serious person" who had taught him to fly.
The inquest heard that the joy flights operation had been sold by Sea World's owner, Village Roadshow Theme Parks, to Sea World Helicopters in 2019. The inquiry is scheduled to hear testimony from executives of Sea World Helicopters next week as it continues to examine the circumstances leading to one of Australia's worst civilian air disasters.
