Sea World Chief Pilot among four killed in Gold Coast helicopter crash

Tributes are flowing for the pilot killed alongside three passengers in a collision between two Sea World helicopters on the Gold Coast yesterday.

Ash Jenkinson, aged 40, the Chief Pilot for Sea World Helicopters, was behind the controls of one aircraft which nosedived into a sandbar after a mid-air collision on the Broadwater about 2pm Monday afternoon.

Among a range of tributes on social media, friend Ritchie Gregg called him a ‘legend’ and recounted when his helicopter aided victims of the 2022 floods.

Gregg wrote to Facebook “this will always be the highlight of my life and just one of your legacies when we helped flood people. Cheers.”

Three more passengers - a woman and two young boys - are in critical condition.

Queensland Ambulance Service spokeswoman Jayney Shearman said six patients suffering minor injuries, mainly glass shrapnel from the impact, were also taken to hospital.

She advised that the critically injured people were suffering from "multi-system trauma, which means that there was a lot of impact to the body".

Witnesses told media that one of the helicopters was coming into land when it clipped the rotor of the other aircraft that was taking off.

What has happened on the Gold Coast today is an unthinkable tragedy. My deepest sympathies are with each of the families and everyone affected by this terrible accident.

— Annastacia Palaszczuk (@AnnastaciaMP) January 2, 2023

One of the helicopters, carrying seven people, plunged to the ground while the second, carrying six people, managed to regain control after the collision and land upright with those on board all surviving.

Queensland Police Inspector Gary Worrell thanked members of the public who tried to help straight after the crash, going on to explain “one airframe has the windscreen removed and it's landed safely on the island.

"The other airframe has crashed, and it was upside down.

"Members of the public and police tried to remove the people and they commenced first aid and to try and get those people to safety out of the airframe that was upside down."

The Queensland Ambulance Service said “multiple QAS resources and other emergency services” attended the scene.

The Queensland Premier, Annastacia Palaszczuk, said it was an “unthinkable tragedy”, expressing her “deepest sympathies” on Twitter.

The Sea World theme park - a separate entity to Sea World Helicopters - will re-open today.

Image: Ash Jenkinson was behind the controls of the helicopter which nosedived into the Gold Coast Broadwater sandbar.