SYDNEY: An newbie pilot had been celebrating with colleagues earlier than he “misappropriated” a helicopter and fatally crashed into the roof of an Australian hotel, his employer mentioned on Tuesday (Aug 13).
Lots of of patrons have been evacuated from the DoubleTree by Hilton within the tropical vacationer hub of Cairns on Monday morning after the twin-engine helicopter crashed, igniting a fiery explosion on the resort roof.
The pilot was killed within the accident, whereas two patrons staying within the resort have been handled for minor accidents.
The helicopter belonged to luxurious constitution firm Nautilus Aviation, which mentioned it had employed the person in a “floor crew place”.
Nautilus Aviation mentioned the person “gained unauthorised entry to our helicopter hangar and misappropriated certainly one of our helicopters”.
Hours earlier than the crash, the person had been celebrating at a personal send-off earlier than transferring to take up one other place throughout the firm, Nautilus Aviation mentioned.
Though the pilot was licensed to fly helicopters in New Zealand, he had by no means flown earlier than in Australia.