A MAN is in a critical condition after a small helicopter crashed onto mudflats at a remote beach near Darwin.
The man, who was a passenger in the helicopter and believed to be aged in his 50s, suffered chest and lung injuries and a fractured arm in the crash at Dundee Beach, 50km southwest of Darwin, tonight, an NRMA CareFlight spokesman said.
A CareFlight rescue helicopter found the crashed chopper in the dark and flew the passenger and pilot to the Royal Darwin Hospital.
The pilot escaped the crash with minor injuries but was suffering severe shock.
He told the CareFlight doctor he was flying along the beach from where the pair had camped and turned to observe a crocodile then crashed.
He dragged his passenger to the safety of the shore, away from crocodiles, then buried him in the sand up to his neck to try to stop him getting hypothermia.
The pilot used a satellite phone to alert authorities shortly before 6.30pm (CST) as he struggled to rescue his passenger, the CareFlight spokesman said.
CareFlight chief air crewman Daniel Warring said the rescue was made difficult because of darkness and because there was no road access for other emergency services.
Mr Warring said the single piston engine R22 helicopter crashed onto a mudflat about 100 metres from the main beach.
What a horrible thing for any pilot to have to do
