[Peetwo]

Update: Croc-o-shite report the gift that keeps on giving?? -   

Via the Search 4 IP yesterday:

The mills of the gods grind slow; etc.

The truth contained within the rest of that line is questionable; much depends on just how 'fine' the end product is, and is it fit for purpose? The glib, rather slippery article from the ABC – HERE – exposes some fairly ugly facts; easily read and soon forgotten. Just another quick glance, head shake and back to the funny pages or the form guide. How can it be that the nation, particularly those who actually run the joint, just accept  the facts presented without the roof coming off the building. How?

“What I seek to accomplish is simply to serve with my feeble capacity truth and justice, at the risk of pleasing no one.”

To begin at the very end; there is a man dead, another seriously injured and a hull written off to scrap and salvage. The 'operation' whilst at a slightly elevated 'risk' level should, properly managed, been much less risk to life than the razor grass cuts, snake bites and cranky crocodiles, pissed off with nest invasion. It  begs a personal question; would I be the 'dope on the rope'? Probably not; but not because of any perceived 'aeronautical' risk. I don't like hot, sweaty condition, insect bites, razor grass, or even glorious mud; hate it all. But, in a tolerable environment; sure why not: BUT. I would want to see the scripted risk mitigation; the operations manual, the approvals and pilot qualification training program, recent flight check report and experience. Then a look at aircraft maintenance records, before checking out the aircraft myself – to be sure. It would be interesting to see if a 'sling load' qualification was valid. Then I would need to address such matters as airborne rappelling; and, possibly even fast rope from a helicopter. In short; there is a small mountain of 'safety' related maintenance, pilot and 'rope-man' training and qualifications which, even if not strictly 'mandatory' should be given some serious consideration and be, at least in part nodded to – risk acknowledged? . For example:-

Sling Endorsement.

“This rating is a requirement for helicopter pilots working in the areas of fire fighting, search and rescue, and mining and logging. Sling load operations are one of the most technically difficult skills to master and require a high level of concentration, so completing this training is guaranteed to increase your flying ability and career prospects. We have highly-experienced instructors available to train you for Long Line and Short Line Sling endorsements. Minimum flight time required for this rating is determined by your instructor and dependent on the time it takes you to become proficient in the operation.”

Or: Before 'rappelling' from a helicopter – see – HERE – and note the 'boxed' rider at the end of the blurb.

“A story has no beginning or end: arbitrarily one chooses that moment of experience from which to look back or from which to look ahead.”

The whole Crock o' Crap matter is now the subject of endless 'legal' wrangling; trained legal minds at 10 paces; banging away at each other, scoring high blown 'points'; blocking attack, defending their paying clients and so on and so forth. But will they ever get down in the weeds and trace this almost (99%) preventable death to the radical cause. The initial approvals issued by CASA and the ongoing monitoring of company adherence with those approvals. Were the maintenance logs checked against flight times; were the defects recorded and corrected; was there a rigid fuel policy? All good solid operational oversight stuff; - but what of the 'sub culture' : the company attitude toward real 'risk mitigation'. How many 'normalised deviance' items were investigated related to aircraft fitness for role? Clearly, no questions were ever raised; it was deemed to be an operation so squeaky clean that it was completely acceptable for the CASA Board to visit and toddle off for scenic flight. Ye gods, had the 'inspectors' been doing their jobs; in Broome and in the bush – perhaps (sans intent) this and other tragedies could have been prevented. Perhaps the whiff of police operations played a part; or not, just another intriguing 'curiosity' in this saga.

“Wise men have interpreted dreams, and the gods have laughed.”

Aye; there's blame 'aplenty to share around; but IMO, CASA failed in the beginning, failed in the middle and at the end are doing what they always do best – pass the responsibility off through legal verbiage and denial. Why not, they have all their get out of jail cards, neatly scripted and carefully tucked up their sleeves. Failed to perform design operational function, but brilliant in defense of the indefensible. Bloody marvelous...Stellar etc.....

Toot - toot.

"..The whole Crock o' Crap matter is now the subject of endless 'legal' wrangling; trained legal minds at 10 paces; banging away at each other, scoring high blown 'points'; blocking attack, defending their paying clients and so on and so forth.."

In terms of 'legal wrangling', I note the following recent Kristin Shorten media articles on the subject, via the Nightly...

Outback Wrangler Matt Wright comes face to face with Chris Wilson’s widow Danielle in court for the first time

Kristin Shorten
THE NIGHTLY
4 MIN READ
07 JUN 2024

The widow of Netflix star Chris Wilson has come face-to-face with their former friend, Outback Wrangler host Matt Wright, in the Federal Court.

Danielle Wilson is suing the celebrity croc-wrangler, his aviation company Helibrook Pty Ltd and the Civil Aviation Safety Authority over her husband’s death during a crocodile egg-collecting mission at West Arnhem Land in February 2022.

Ms Wilson was silent as she arrived at the Federal Court building in Sydney on Thursday morning, flanked by her legal team, for a day of court-ordered mediation.

Wright made a brief comment to the media as he walked towards the Federal Court building with his lawyer David Newey from Gillis Delaney in Sydney.

“It’s not gonna bring our mate back, is it?” he said to the press pack.

Wilson – who starred alongside Wright in reality television shows including Outback Wrangler and Wild Croc Territory — was slinging beneath the helicopter when it crashed soon after taking off from a clearing on the King River.

The destroyed Robinson R44 Raven II, registered VH-IDW, was owned and operated by Wright’s company Helibrook.

It was being flown by Wright’s employee Sebastian Robinson.

The 31-year-old pilot, who is now paraplegic, is not a party to the civil proceedings.

The egg-collecting operation was being conducted under CASA authorisation, which allowed Helibrook to sling a person beneath its piston engine-powered helicopters for the purpose of crocodile egg collecting, at the time it crashed.


The crashed helicopter. Credit: CareFlight

Ms Wilson claims CASA, Helibrook and Wright breached their duty of care in allowing her husband to be slung beneath a piston engine-powered chopper to collect crocodile eggs the day he was killed.

The 34-year-old is being represented by Salerno Law managing partner Cliff Savala, who has briefed one of the country’s top aviation barristers David Lloyd SC and experienced junior counsel Matthew Kalyk from Sydney’s 12 Wentworth Selborne Chambers.

Ms Wilson’s legal team on Thursday night said their client’s disputes had not been resolved.

“The mediation remains a live and ongoing process,” Mr Savala said.

“It would therefore be inappropriate for Ms Wilson to comment at this time.”


Outback Wrangler Matt Wright. Credit: Unknown/Facebook

In November, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau released its final report on the fatal accident, finding that the helicopter “likely” collided with terrain on the morning of February 28, 2022, due to fuel exhaustion.

However, ATSB findings are inadmissible in civil and criminal proceedings.

At a case management hearing last week, CASA’s lawyer Thomas Miller – from multinational law firm MinterEllison – said his client was willing to attend mediation and “attempt to resolve as many of the disputes as possible” but was “not likely to be able to make monetary offers of settlement” until it had obtained expert evidence.

“There is a novel duty of care alleged against CASA as regulator, that it should have taken different actions as regulator, both in relation to the legislative instruments that are passed, in relation to its surveillance activities,” he said.

“There is a helicopter which has crashed, and there are unclear circumstances as to why it crashed.”


Chris ‘Willow’ Wilson with wife Danielle. Credit: Supplied

Justice Elizabeth Raper insisted that mediation at an early stage of the proceedings would be beneficial despite it being “imperfect in terms of you don’t have all the evidence”.

Ms Wilson – now a single mother of the couple’s two young sons – is claiming damages, interest, costs, interest on costs and “such other order as the court sees fit”.

“As a result of this conduct, the applicant suffered nervous shock or psychiatric harm and loss of maintenance and financial support of Mr Wilson during the course of his lifetime,” the claim states.

None of the respondents have filed a defence.

The next case management hearing is scheduled for June 27.

---

Outback Wrangler Matt Wright hires heavy-hitting silk to avoid Supreme Court showdown over fatal chopper crash
Kristin Shorten
THE NIGHTLY
3 MIN READ
14 JUN 2024

The widow of Netflix star Chris Wilson has moved to freeze Outback Wrangler Matt Wright’s assets and sue him personally over the fatal Northern Territory chopper crash that killed her husband. Credit: The West Australian

Outback Wrangler host Matt Wright has hired the heavy-hitting Adelaide silk who defended Zachary Rolfe, in an eleventh-hour bid to avoid a protracted public trial over the fatal chopper crash that killed his Netflix co-star Chris ‘Willow’ Wilson.

More than six months after Wright’s most serious criminal charge of perverting the course of justice – which carries a 15-year jail sentence – was committed to the Northern Territory Supreme Court, the celebrity croc-wrangler has engaged two new barristers.

During his most recent criminal callover listing in Darwin, one of those barristers – Frank Merenda from Francis Burt Chambers in Perth – indicated his client was trying to negotiate a plea deal.

Up until recently, Wright had been represented by Sydney-based barrister Greg Jones but Mr Merenda this month told the court he was taking advice from David Edwardson KC.

Mr Edwardson successfully represented former NT police officer Zachary Rolfe when he was charged with murder over the shooting death of Kumanjayi Walker during an arrest at Yuendumu.

Mr Merenda also represented Mr Rolfe at Walker’s coronial inquest.

The court heard Wright’s new legal counsel is trying to reach an agreement with the Director of Public Prosecutions to avoid their high-profile client facing a lengthy Supreme Court trial.

“I have conferred with (senior crown prosecutor Steve) Ledek who has primary carriage of this matter on behalf of the director’s office,” Mr Merenda told the court last week.

“I think the joint position is we’re attempting to resolve a number of matters before a decision is made in terms of how a plea will resolve.

“What’s been discussed since January is a question of particulars with a view to discussing the possibility of a negotiated plea.

“We’ve received information from the director. I’ve engaged with Mr Edwardson KC to give advice in relation to those matters, which is why we’re ultimately seeking four weeks to resolve those issues.”

During the six-minute mention, Judge Vincent Luppino said he was “a little bit confused” about what the parties were negotiating.

“What I’m trying to find out is, is there any possibility that the matter will be a plea?” he asked.

Crown Prosecutor Rebecca Everitt confirmed that the next mention might involve a plea.

“Yes, your honour,” she said.


Outback Wrangler Matt Wright and pilot Michael Burbidge were charged over the fatal Northern Territory chopper crash that killed Chris Wilson in February 2022. Credit: Unknown/Facebook

“The parties need time to settle their position as to whether it will be a plea, a disputed facts (hearing) or heading for a trial.”

Wilson – who starred alongside Wright in reality television shows including Outback Wrangler and Wild Croc Territory – was slinging beneath a helicopter when it crashed during a crocodile egg-collecting mission at West Arnhem Land in February 2022.

The destroyed Robinson R44 Raven II, registered VH-IDW, was owned and operated by Wright’s company Helibrook.

Pilot Sebastian Robinson was critically injured and is now paraplegic.

Wright’s charge of perverting the course of justice relates to his alleged actions after the helicopter crash, which occurred soon after taking off from a clearing on the King River.

Judge Luppino adjourned Wright’s matter until August 1 and listed it on the Supreme Court’s “super call over” list.

Wright’s bail was enlarged and he is not required to attend the next mention if legally represented.

The 44-year-old declined to comment on his decision to change legal teams at this late stage in proceedings.

Meanwhile, former NT police officer Neil Mellon, who pleaded guilty to destroying Wilson’s mobile phone after his death, will be sentenced on July 9.

And Mellon’s co-accused, Michael Burbidge, will return to the Supreme Court on July 5 for a one-day hearing after the DPP launched an appeal of his sentence.

In March, Deputy Chief Judge Fong Lim sentenced Burbidge with a conviction and $15,000 fine for destroying Wilson’s mobile phone after his death “with the intent to prevent it from being used in evidence in judicial proceedings”.

The DPP is appealing “against the whole of the sentence” on the ground that it was “manifestly inadequate in all the circumstances”.

“The appellant seeks orders that … the sentence imposed by the Local Court on 8 March 2024 be quashed, and that a new sentence be imposed on the respondent according to law,” the appeal notice states.

Then this on the associated and tragic Broome R44 fatal prang:

Broome helicopter crash: Parents of Amber Millar still facing ‘our worst living nightmare’ four years on

Kristin Shorten
THE NIGHTLY
6 MIN READ
03 JUL 2024


Amber Jess Millar, 12, was killed in July 2020 after the helicopter she was in crashed Broome. Credit: Supplied by family/Supplied

The parents of schoolgirl Amber Millar, who was killed in a horrific helicopter crash with a high-profile pilot, have returned to one of Australia’s most iconic tourist destinations for the first time since their 12-year-old’s preventable death.

Fiona and Clint Benbow have returned to Broome, in Western Australia’s Kimberley region, ahead of the four-year anniversary of the chopper crash that killed their daughter in an attempt to “face our worst living nightmare”.

Amber was killed alongside tourism stalwart Troy Thomas on July 4, 2020 when his Robinson R44 Raven I – registered VH-NBY – crashed immediately after he performed a high-powered vertical take-off from an industrial area north of Broome.

Amber’s traumatised parents have been fighting for answers and justice ever since.

In recent days the couple visited Cable Beach and sat in the exact spot on the sand where Ms Benbow and her daughter had shared their last sunset on July 3, 2020.

“Our first sunset in Broome since the loss of Ambz was stunning and terrifying all at once,” Ms Benbow told The Nightly.

“We just held each other and bawled.

“If only the correct procedures had been followed, Ambz would have been here, enjoying this sunset with us.”


Fiona and Clint Benbow remembering their daughter, chopper crash victim Amber. Credit: The Nightly

Thomas – a high-profile tourism ambassador – was the founder and director of Horizontal Falls Seaplane Adventures in Broome and Swan River Seaplanes in Perth.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau’s nearly three-year investigation uncovered a litany of failures and coverups preceding the fatal crash, which left two other passengers critically injured.

The ATSB found that Thomas had a “high-risk appetite”, a history of non-compliance with aviation laws, was unlicensed and unauthorised to fly the helicopter that day, and that he knew there was a serious problem with it before he loaded passengers onto that final fatal flight.


Amber died during what was meant to be the trip of a lifetime. Credit: Supplied by family/Supplied

Despite the ATSB’s damning findings, there has been no apology, accountability or justice for Amber’s grief-stricken parents.

For them, the ATSB’s final report – released in April 2023 – created further questions about how Thomas had been able to get away with so much, for so long, and why so many people had been complicit.

The Benbows begged the WA Coroner to scrutinise Thomas’ tourism operations, the circumstances of their daughter’s crash and the roles others had played in allowing his reckless conduct to fatally escalate.

But in November, Coroner Michael Jenkin refused their request for an inquest, saying he had sufficient evidence to make an administrative finding about their daughter’s death and that he did not believe holding an inquest would generate new information.


The scene in Broome where the helicopter crashed. Credit: 7NEWS/7NEWS

Since then, the media has continued to expose shocking revelations about the rogue pilot’s rule-breaking, near-death crashes and cover-ups in the years preceding the double-fatality in Broome.

At least three aircraft that Thomas owned or leased from his parents were lost at sea in the three years before he died.

In 2017, one of Thomas’s Robinson R44s, registered VH-SCM, crashed into the water after taking off for a charter flight from the top of a boat at Talbot Bay.

The written-off chopper belonged to his company Avanova Pty Ltd and was operating under the Air Operator’s Certificate of Outback Wrangler host Matt Wright.

The pilot and two passengers, who suffered minor injuries, had to exit the helicopter underwater and swim 50m to shore before being treated in hospital.

The Civil Aviation Safety Authority was told that the helicopter had been recovered from the sea floor and transported to Broome, but CASA did not perform a visual inspection of the wreckage.

In 2018 a Cessna Caravan Amphibian – registered VH-PGA – crashed and apparently sank in the protected Lalang-gaddam Marine Park at Talbot Bay with two pilots onboard who were flying it from Derby to Horizontal Falls.

Thomas’s company Horizontal Falls Seaplane Adventures had leased the aircraft from his parents’ company West Coast Seaplanes Pty Ltd.

Authorities were initially told the seaplane had sunk near Koolan Island before being told it was actually near Slug Island.

Documents obtained by The Nightly through Freedom of Information laws – from CASA and WA’s Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions – excruciatingly detail how an evasive Thomas had given their investigators the runaround and lied to a local Broome journalist about the state of the seaplane.


Troy Thomas was found to have a “high-risk appetite”, and a history of non-compliance with aviation laws. Credit: Supplied/SBS

Internal departmental emails also reveal the frustration of Parks and Wildlife Service investigators, who were focussed on preventing further environmental damage to their marine park, as they tried to determine the seaplane’s true location and arrange to observe the salvage operation, which Thomas insisted had to be kept top-secret.

“The facts seem to change every 20 minutes,” one bamboozled investigator emailed to colleagues.

A DBCA spokesperson confirmed that its staff were onsite when Offshore Diving Services removed the wreckage from the marine park in April 2018.

The seaplane was written off and claimed on insurance.

The following year, in July 2019, Thomas was involved in a near-death accident when he crashed a Robinson R44 Clipper II registered VH-ZGY off the top of his boat with two passengers onboard.

Thomas and his passengers – one of whom was also a pilot – all suffered severe injuries and the helicopter was destroyed.

By law this accident was “immediately reportable” but the ATSB was not notified.

However, the helicopter, owned and operated by Thomas’s company Avanova Pty Ltd, was quickly claimed on insurance.


Amber with her step father Clint Benbow and mother Fiona. Credit: supplied by family/supplied

Meanwhile, Thomas – who did not even have a private pilot licence – was performing commercial medical evacuations in his choppers and charging passengers thousands of dollars.

In July 2019, Thomas airlifted a passenger from luxury catamaran MV Diversity II, off the WA coast, in his Robinson R44 registered VH-ZGY.

In August 2019, Thomas airlifted a couple from expedition vessel Odyssey in a different helicopter and charged them almost $2000 for the service.

The couple received a $1936 invoice from Ultimate Outback Experiences, which traded as Horizontal Falls Seaplane Adventures.

Ultimate Outback Experiences did not hold an Air Operators’ Certificate. Nor did Avanova Pty Ltd, which owned the helicopter.

The RFDS has previously confirmed that neither Thomas nor his companies were contracted to its organisation.


Fiona Benbow and step-father Clint Benbow have vowed to continue their fight for justice. Credit: Jackson Flindell/The West Australian

It was also revealed late last year that Thomas used his crowded industrial property north of Broome as a helicopter landing site – without council permission – for at least four years before the fatal crash despite it being just a few minutes’ drive from a regional airport where he had a hangar.

The private warehouse and residential premises at Bilingurr, which he purchased with his wife Sophie in 2007, was zoned ‘Light and Service Industry’.

The Broome Shire Council never received a request for approval, nor granted approval, to land and take off helicopters from the site.

And in 2018, five separate complaints – supported by photos and videos – were made to CASA about “unsafe behaviour” by helicopters badged Horizontal Falls Seaplane Adventures, which Thomas founded and owned at the time.

Videos of alleged dangerous flying – sent to CASA with written complaints about dangerous incidents in the Kimberley – show that the helicopters involved were not only owned by Thomas, but on at least one occasion, he was flying.

These revelations have incensed Amber’s already devastated parents, who believe multiple parties are responsible for their daughter’s death, including those who helped Thomas cover up previous incidents.

They want everyone connected to the crash and previous incidents to be called to give evidence at an inquest because the coroner is the only investigative body with the power to compel witnesses to answer questions and to do so truthfully.

Even WA Premier Roger Cook has previously said an inquest “looks like being the only vehicle that we can now rely upon to do that level of investigation”.

But the coroner is refusing to review his decision.

“The coroner has completed the investigation and findings into the circumstances surrounding the deaths of Amber Millar and Troy Thomas, having determined that an inquest was not desirable,” a spokesperson said.

“That determination cannot be reviewed in the Coroner’s Court.”

The Benbows, who lost “our entire world” when Amber died, refuse to give up or be silenced.

“We will never stop speaking Amber’s name and honouring her as best we can until our very last breath,” Ms Benbow said yesterday. “That we promise.”

MTF...P2

PS: I note that today the NT News has this headline and byline on the Outback Wrangler court case:

Wright seeks to avoid jury trial for work safety charges over chopper crash

Matt Wright seeks to avoid jury trial for work safety charges over Chris Wilson chopper crash. WorkSafe prosecutor Nicholas Goodfellow said he had had discussions with the celebrity croc wrangler's legal team 'about the course of this action and particularly the jurisdiction'.