An out-of-control helicopter crashed into a parked car in Australia, killing a flight instructor and critically injuring a 19-year-old student. According to a press release from the New South Wales police Force on October 3, the crash happened on Birch Street, Bankstown.
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Out-Of-Control Helicopter Crashes Into Car, Killing Instructor And Critical Injuring Teen Student
Emergency services arrived at the site of the helicopter crash around 1:30 PM on Friday. Although NSW Ambulance paramedics treated the man after the crash, the man died at the scene.
Officials have yet to identify the male instructor. Otherwise, emergency responders took the 19-year-old man to Liverpool Hospital. He arrived in critical condition and is still being treated for serious injuries.
“A crime scene has been established by officers attached to Bankstown Police Area Command and an investigation into the cause of the crash will be undertaken by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB),” it said.
According to the Sydney Morning Herald, Nine News captured footage of the crash in Sydney’s southwest. It showed the moments before the deadly accident, the helicopter “hurling towards the street.”
It was right outside Bankstown Airport where the helicopter fell, colliding with a tree and a parked car below it. After looking at the video, it clearly looked like the pilot lost control as it plummeted to the ground.
Aerial images captured after the accident showed the helicopter split in two. While the car’s trunk was damaged, the helicopter’s damage was worse. The majority of the damage was to the passenger pit.
Investigating The Crash’s Cause
In a statement from the Australian Transport Safety Bureau, it confirmed the helicopter’s model. “The ASTB has launched a transport safety investigation into a collision with terrain accident involving a Robinson R22 helicopter just outside Bankstown Airport,” it said.
A safety investigative team from the bureau had to figure out how the crash occurred in the first place. It seems they were conducting a training flight prior to the crash.
“The piston-engine helicopter had been conducting a training flight with an instructor and student pilot on board when it collided with terrain and was destroyed,” said the bureau.
Its investigators are now collecting important information, such as “flight tracking data, weather information, and pilot and helicopter maintenance records.”