Originally Posted by
helispotter
Many years back, I took a scenic flight in the former Sea World Long Ranger, VH-UTL as a helicopter enthusiast as much as anything. For others who are unfamiliar with the Sea World site, their original helipad was accessed from within the theme park itself and was built on pylons over the water. That is the one that video shows was used by the departing EC 130B4 which was most likely VH-XKQ. A short distance south of that pad was their hangar facility which could accommodate three helicopters each on its own dolly that could be rolled out to a further helipad on pylons and also over the water (see Helicopters Australasia Jan/Feb 1999 issue). I am not sure if this is still used to hangar helicopters. Further south again, and effectively outside the 'theme park' boundary is a newer facility with four landing pads and newer hangar(s). Google Maps satellite view doesn't show that facility yet, rather only a single helipad earlier on. See attached screen shots stitched together from one of the videos in a link I provided earlier.
Going by the apparent flight paths in the video footage, my feeling is that VH-XH9 may have been approaching one of the helipads of the newer facility while VH-XKQ crossed its path on its departure. In the screen shots, it is as if the older helipads might be marked "X" rather than the usual "H". I recently came across an emergency helipad elsewhere in Australia where the original "H" marking was overpainted with "X" suggesting it was no longer in use. Was it perhaps intended for a period that those earlier Sea World pads were no longer intended to be used?
The original pad was indeed deactivated at the time of the new pads in the carpark area in 2019 and only was only recently refurbished and reactivated, presumably to get more walk up passengers.
I'd suggest either the SOPs weren't adjusted for the potential for conflicting traffic between the old and the new pads or someone forgot to follow them.