Hevilift PNG - still not paying
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Hevilift PNG - still not paying
A Victorian man, rendered quadriplegic after a horror helicopter crash in Papua New Guinea, is accusing an international aviation company of failing to pay him millions of dollars in damages.
The 69-year-old former pilot suffered spinal injuries in 2006 when the helicopter he was flying crashed into a mountain, killing three passengers on board.
In April this year, the Cairns Supreme Court ordered aviation company Hevilift to pay Mr Towers $5.6 million for failing to provide him with proper flying instruments and warn him about dangerous weather conditions that led to the crash.
Mr Towers said he had not received a cent of what he was owed.
"They have fought me tooth-and-nail all the way to the end … I am peeved off, the fact that they can't accept it," he said.
"I'm running out of time, they've still got the money and they know that they can pay it."
Mr Towers is unable to walk and now requires a wheelchair.
He said the compensation, which he spent 14 years fighting for, would help with medical expenses and allow him to pay back friends he had borrowed money from over the years.
"Money to do things and get by and live life a little bit better. I would like to leave something for people," Mr Towers said.
His solicitor, Tim Lucey, said Hevilift had ignored correspondence requesting Mr Towers' compensation be paid.
"We are very concerned that he may not receive any compensation," Mr Lucey said.
"This company has, at every juncture, tried to stop or stymie fair compensation for Bruce. We want Bruce to be paid what he's owed and what he deserves."
Hevilift declined to comment on the matter because it was appealing to the Supreme Courts to have the damages reduced.
A Bell 206 helicopter owned by the transport company Hevilift sits on the ground.(Supplied: Hevilift Group)
But Mr Lucey said the appeal process did not exempt Hevilift from having to pay the compensation.
"It just calls into question whether they are a fit and proper person — or people — to fly people around," he said.
Hevilift Limited is a Papua New Guinean company with subsidiaries that operate in Australia, India, Singapore and Thailand.
Mr Lucey said further action would be taken against Hevilift if it did not pay Mr Towers.
"If someone doesn't have the money to pay due and owing, debt administrators can be appointed to the company to sell assets, to wind it up," he said.
Key points:
- A Victorian pilot is owed $5.6 million in damages after a helicopter crash left him a quadriplegic in 2006
- International aviation company Hevilift failed to provide Bruce Towers with proper flying instruments, which resulted in the crash
- The 69-year-old says the company has failed to pay him after a 14-year legal battle for compensation
The 69-year-old former pilot suffered spinal injuries in 2006 when the helicopter he was flying crashed into a mountain, killing three passengers on board.
In April this year, the Cairns Supreme Court ordered aviation company Hevilift to pay Mr Towers $5.6 million for failing to provide him with proper flying instruments and warn him about dangerous weather conditions that led to the crash.
Mr Towers said he had not received a cent of what he was owed.
"They have fought me tooth-and-nail all the way to the end … I am peeved off, the fact that they can't accept it," he said.
"I'm running out of time, they've still got the money and they know that they can pay it."
Mr Towers is unable to walk and now requires a wheelchair.
He said the compensation, which he spent 14 years fighting for, would help with medical expenses and allow him to pay back friends he had borrowed money from over the years.
"Money to do things and get by and live life a little bit better. I would like to leave something for people," Mr Towers said.
His solicitor, Tim Lucey, said Hevilift had ignored correspondence requesting Mr Towers' compensation be paid.
"We are very concerned that he may not receive any compensation," Mr Lucey said.
"This company has, at every juncture, tried to stop or stymie fair compensation for Bruce. We want Bruce to be paid what he's owed and what he deserves."
Hevilift declined to comment on the matter because it was appealing to the Supreme Courts to have the damages reduced.
A Bell 206 helicopter owned by the transport company Hevilift sits on the ground.(Supplied: Hevilift Group)
But Mr Lucey said the appeal process did not exempt Hevilift from having to pay the compensation.
"It just calls into question whether they are a fit and proper person — or people — to fly people around," he said.
Hevilift Limited is a Papua New Guinean company with subsidiaries that operate in Australia, India, Singapore and Thailand.
Mr Lucey said further action would be taken against Hevilift if it did not pay Mr Towers.
"If someone doesn't have the money to pay due and owing, debt administrators can be appointed to the company to sell assets, to wind it up," he said.
Last edited by Senior Pilot; 3rd Nov 2020 at 21:41. Reason: Picture/quote pagination
Bruce Towers said he "shouldn't have survived" the horrific accident, which occurred when his helicopter was suddenly engulfed in thick cloud while transporting six workers from an oil and gas mine in the highlands of Papua New Guinea in 2006."All of a sudden I got a sudden temperature change and it went into sheer fog on the 4,000–5,000-foot mountain," he said.
"This particular helicopter that I was flying in didn't have gyro instruments in [it] that I could keep the helicopter upright."
Within 30 seconds the helicopter slammed into a tree and crashed, falling about 50 metres, killing three passengers and "mashing" Mr Towers' spine.
A court decision in 2016 found international aviation company, Hevilift, failed to provide Mr Towers with adequate flight instruments and training required for the conditions.
Justice James Henry also found the company breached its duty of care by not informing Mr Towers of weather phenomena in the region, which caused clouds to form suddenly in the late afternoon.
"This particular helicopter that I was flying in didn't have gyro instruments in [it] that I could keep the helicopter upright."
Within 30 seconds the helicopter slammed into a tree and crashed, falling about 50 metres, killing three passengers and "mashing" Mr Towers' spine.
A court decision in 2016 found international aviation company, Hevilift, failed to provide Mr Towers with adequate flight instruments and training required for the conditions.
Justice James Henry also found the company breached its duty of care by not informing Mr Towers of weather phenomena in the region, which caused clouds to form suddenly in the late afternoon.
33:20 shows the sort of problem he apparently faced.
206 is a VFR only machine, do the regs require it to have an attitude indicator? If so, why did the pilot accept the aircraft without it so fitted? Pilot is not permitted to base operations on weather reports provided by unapproved persons, was the company responsible for providing such reports? Training for the conditions? How much experience did he have in PNG? If you have a commercial license you know what VMC is, as does a PPL. Folks continually get caught out in PNG weather with a bad ending, military fatal included loss of a Caribou. Not flown there myself but have read the threads of those who have and can only admire the skill set of those who have survived, lost a very good friend, Geoff Wallace in 1961.
08.03.61: Lost without trace while operating a regular Popondetta - Port Moresby flight. Intensive aerial and ground search in the inhospitable Owen Stanley Ranges never found the aircraft.
01.10.70: The wreckage of the Piaggio was found in the Owen Stanley Ranges when searchers were searching for a lost Piper Aztec. The finding of the wreckage confirmed what was beleived at the time, that the pilot of the Piaggio had taken the direct Popondetta to Port Moresby route in bad weather rather than adhering to company policy of diverting to the south of the Ranges and flying coastal to Port Moresby.
01.10.70: The wreckage of the Piaggio was found in the Owen Stanley Ranges when searchers were searching for a lost Piper Aztec. The finding of the wreckage confirmed what was beleived at the time, that the pilot of the Piaggio had taken the direct Popondetta to Port Moresby route in bad weather rather than adhering to company policy of diverting to the south of the Ranges and flying coastal to Port Moresby.
B206L3 Accident in PNG
Was there an official report, the PNG authority site doesn't go back that far?
Last edited by megan; 3rd Nov 2020 at 06:15.
The same company that operates a scheduled service around much of Aussie.....?
Thread Starter
Yes it is. Hevilift is Hevilift regardless of Australia or PNG and the paint scheme's are the same! The office addresses are the same.
The picture of the PC-6 Pilatus Porter shows an aircraft in Papua, Indonesia. NOT in Papua New Guinea.
The picture of the PC-6 Pilatus Porter shows an aircraft in Papua, Indonesia. NOT in Papua New Guinea.
Moderator
Getting on towards 50 years since I last saw Bruce (parachuting at Pakenham). His present situation one wouldn't wish on anyone. My thoughts are with him.
[QUOTE=Office Update;10918194]Yes it is. Hevilift is Hevilift regardless of Australia or PNG and the paint scheme's are the same! The office addresses are the same.
Same same but completely different.
In the eyes of the law one isn’t liable for the other.
My educated guess is old mate won’t see 1 Toea.
Same same but completely different.
In the eyes of the law one isn’t liable for the other.
My educated guess is old mate won’t see 1 Toea.
