Brave to the end: army helicopter crash victims hailed

[Pelican Press 0]

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Brave to the end: army helicopter ****** victims hailed

Four crew killed in an army helicopter ****** were “brave and selfless to the end”, the defence minister says, confirming the government accepts all 46 recommendations of a safety report.

The Aviation Safety Investigation Report into the MRH-90 Taipan helicopter ****** off the Whitsunday Islands in Queensland on July 28, 2023 was released on Wednesday.

Captain Danniel Lyon, Lieutenant Maxwell Nugent, Warrant Officer Class Two Joseph Laycock and Corporal Alexander Naggs were killed when their helicopter crashed into the sea during Exercise Talisman Sabre.

Defence Minister Richard Marles thanked the Defence Flight Safety Bureau for their “tireless” work on the report and said every recommendation would be accepted by the government.

The investigation, one of four into the ******, was an important step in understanding what occurred and learning from it, the minister told reporters in Brisbane on Thursday.

“I would observe that the four crew who tragically lost their lives I’m absolutely certain were brave and selfless to the end,” he said.

“Our thoughts are very much with their families, and we continue to work with them.”

Mr Marles said the defence force was deeply focused on safety, but what defence did was inherently dangerous and it was important to “train for real”.

The Talisman Sabre exercise alongside US and other nations’ forces was Australia’s most significant annual exercise for such training, he said.

The ****** report found the primary cause of the tragedy was “spatial disorientation”, which happens when a pilot misperceives the position of their aircraft in relation to the surrounding environment.

It concluded the pilots were likely experiencing a level of fatigue shown to “impede optimal performance” and increase susceptibility to spatial disorientation.

“The estimated level of fatigue … was considered sufficient to affect their actions and decisions in the event,” the report said.

It said the pilot likely didn’t know the chopper was facing nose down and combined with a lack of recognition of the aircraft’s increasing airspeed “resulted in a very high and unrecoverable rate of descent towards the water”.

The helicopter was conducting manoeuvres during rain showers and flying with its cabin doors closed, factors that restricted visibility.

Defence All-hours Support Line (ASL) – 1800 628 036

Defence Member and Family Support – 1800 624 608

Open Arms – Veterans & Families Counselling – 1800 011 046

Lifeline – 13 11 14

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