View Full Version : Man dies in NT helicopter crash 4 Oct 2010
Does anyone have any further information on this...
Man dies in NT helicopter crash
Map: Katherine 0850 A man has been killed in a helicopter crash about 150 kilometres east of Katherine in the Northern Territory.
Police say the crash happened about noon (ACDT) near the Mountain Valley Station Homestead.
They say the pilot was the only person in the helicopter.
Police from Katherine, Maranboy and Bulman are at the scene.
Turbulent Eddy
5th Oct 2010, 06:45
Not much, but a little bit more info....
Chopper pilot dies in cattle muster crash | Northern Territory News | Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia | ntnews.com.au (http://www.ntnews.com.au/article/2010/10/05/184321_ntnews.html)
A MALE pilot died yesterday when the helicopter he was flying crashed on a station, 150kms east of Katherine.
Brodie Hitchenor was mustering cattle with Mountain Valley Station owner Ben Tapp when his chopper crashed into a ditch yesterday morning.
Mr Tapp said that Mr Hitchenor was travelling low to the ground before he lost sight of him.
"He was out in one helicopter and I was in the other helicopter. I was going to check up on him. I looked for him and everything and found him in a gutter," he said.
The station staff notified police at 11.53am
Police from Maranboy and Bullman went to the crash site to secure the scene for the Australian Transport Safety Bureau, who took charge of the investigations.
Mr Hitchenor worked at Mountain Valley Station for five years. He leaves behind fiancee Bianca Hall.
"He was a good man," a shocked Mr Tapp said yesterday.
http://www.ntnews.com.au/images/uploadedfiles/editorial/pictures/2010/10/05/Helicopter-crash-300.jpg
topendtorque
5th Oct 2010, 09:29
and this
Popular pilot killed in mustering crash - 05/10/2010 (http://www.abc.net.au/rural/nt/content/201010/s3030025.htm)
A 29-year-old cattleman was killed yesterday when his R-22 helicopter crashed near Katherine.
Brodie Hitchner was mustering on Mountain Valley Station when it's believed the tail rotor of the helicopter clipped trees, forcing it to crash on a creek bank.
Long-time friend Bill Bright says Brodie Hitchner was a lovely young man who he met on the campdraft circuit.
"He was quite a keen and competitive campdrafter when he was a young fella and he came up and worked for me for 12 months at Kiana Station.
"I had a helicopter on Kiana and from the time he got there he decided that that's what he wanted to do, be a helicopter pilot.
"A cursory glance at history would suggest that he was a good pilot and a careful pilot. Up until this, he had no prior history of accidents or incidents as far as I'm aware.
"He was a useful, knowledgeable helicopter pilot and a great asset to the cattle industry."
A team from the Australian Transport Safety Bureau is expected to arrive at Mountain Valley Station today to investigate the crash.