Four die as helicopter crashes
09nov03
FOUR people are dead after a helicopter crashed in remote cattle country near Kununurra yesterday morning. The Slingair Heliwork chopper went down shortly before 11am about 40km north of the town, on a cattle station owned by media magnate Kerry Packer.
The Sunday Times understands all four men on the charter flight were from Kununurra in the state's far north.
The dead pilot was local identity Kim Rankin whose father, Dusty Rankin, was a pioneering Kimberley helicopter operator before his death in a chopper accident more than a decade ago.
The three passengers on board the Robinson 44 helicopter are understood to have been employees of the Ord River District Co-operative.
Wyndham-East Kimberley shire president Barbara Johnson said the men were well known in Kununurra and their deaths had shocked the town.
"I am devastated and the community will be devastated as news of this tragedy gets out," she said.
"Most people up here would have known these men and will feel their loss. It has just been a very sad day for Kununurra."
The men were returning from a fishing trip - believed to have been a work reward - when the chopper went down in rugged terrain at Carlton Hill station and exploded on impact.
Kununurra police went to the site yesterday and confirmed that all the men in the aircraft, all in their 20s, had died in the crash. Police are due to return to the site today with air safety investigators.
It was not known what caused the crash.
The chartered aircraft had left Kununurra at 5.15am for a fishing trip at Cape Domett in Cambridge Gulf, 100km to the northeast.
It was about 80km into the return flight when the crash occurred.
Heliworks was established by Kerry Slingsby in 1984, with seven Bell helicopters and a fixed-wing aircraft.
Mustering cattle was the mainstay of its early operations until tourism took off in 1990 with flights over the Bungle Bungles.
The company has two modern facilities at Kununurra airport and has won successive WA Tourism Awards since 1996.
Source
Poor conditions hamper WA helicopter crash probe
Difficult terrain and bad weather may hamper the investigation into a helicopter crash near Kununurra in Western Australia's far north.
All four people on board were killed when the helicopter crashed, about 23 nautical miles north-west of Kununurra about 10:30am AWST.
It is understood the charter flight was returning from a fishing trip.
People on board a second helicopter travelling with the group witnessed the crash and have been interviewed by Kununurra police.
Police spokesman Andy O'Neil says investigators have had trouble reaching the crash site.
"The area itself is very rugged, they haven't been able to get to it by vehicle, there's storms approaching so they've had to sit tight on it at the moment and we're waiting for Australian Transport Safety Bureau investigators and the police forensic officer to attend Kununurra tomorrow and they'll continue the investigation," he said.
All four people killed in the crash are believed to be local residents.
Mr O'Neil says the crash has been a shock for the town.
"[It's] believed all the people were ... local residents - the names haven't been released as yet because we're still contacting family members," he said.
source with basic map