Arnhem Land - Helicopter Bird Strike - 14 July 2025

[SGM]

One passenger fatality.  A telecommunications technician.  Tragic.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-07-14/nt-police-investigating-fatal-helicopter-incident-in-gapuwiyak/105531216

[facthunter]

 Could happen toa fixed wing also.. Nev

[danny_galaga]

Just came here to post this. What an unlucky accident 😔 

[onetrack]

Gee, that must have been some decent sized bird. Poor bugger, how unlucky could you be?

 

I can recall a pilot operating a Cessna twin from the W.A. mainland to Koolan Island, way back in the early 80's, or perhaps even the late 70's, hitting a Sea Eagle (Osprey) that came through the windscreen on him.

 

It hit him smack in the face, knocked two of his front teeth out, and actually knocked him unconscious for a short period. The worst part was the bird carcass partly shredded and the cockpit filled with feathers and blood and guts.

 

He managed to keep control of the aircraft, he then turned back to the mainland and landed it successfully. It must have been a very stressful experience.

 

Edited Tuesday at 09:53 AM by onetrack
punkchewation.....

[IanR]

On 15/07/2025 at 10:48 AM, facthunter said:

 Could happen toa fixed wing also.. Nev

Happened to me a couple of months ago in the middle of the Nullabor ! Lots of damage

[BrendAn]

59 minutes ago, IanR said:

Happened to me a couple of months ago in the middle of the Nullabor ! Lots of damage

it would have scared  sh#t out of you wouldn't it.  did it come through your windscreen.

i have heard of a truck in wa that had  a wedgetail eagle come through the windscreen and was still alive in the cabin. 

trouble with them is they feed on roadkill and don't move fast enough when you get near them.

[IanR]

33 minutes ago, BrendAn said:

it would have scared  sh#t out of you wouldn't it.  did it come through your windscreen.

i have heard of a truck in wa that had  a wedgetail eagle come through the windscreen and was still alive in the cabin. 

trouble with them is they feed on roadkill and don't move fast enough when you get near them.

The one that hit me was in attack mode. Hit the wing near the fuselage. Wakes you up. Pushed the leading edge back quite a way.

[facthunter]

I saw a C-180 where the bird went back to the Mainspar. Over Griffith in a Beech A-36 I only just missed a Large wedgetail at 8000 ft  Seemed as though it was asleep in a thermal. They will easily go through most  light aircraft's windscreens.  Nev

[Litespeed]

Definately a good reason for Lexan screens if you can afford it.

 

Or a open face helmet with bubble screen.

 

I hit a Galah at 120 kmh on a bike 35 years ago and still remember feeling been hit by a gorrilla with a sledge hammer.

 

The helmet screen took a direct hit, not cracked just scratched.

[Russ]

I’ll bet it was a wedgy, they’re everywhere up here, adults weighs 20+kg, imagine 20kg hitting your head at 100kts…….break your neck in a blink.

[onetrack]

They are a big bird, for sure, but nowhere near 20 kgs. The references all state around 6kg as a maximum body weight. Their sheer size does make them look like they weigh 20kgs, though.

 

I've raised a wedgetail eagle from a hen-sized chick to full adult size, after we unintentionally knocked its nest down during clearing operations.

 

This was 50 years ago, when there were no laws on keeping or raising wildlife. We called him Samson, but it's quite possible he was a she, because we never sexed the bird. When Samson was full grown, his wingspan was huge, easily 2.4M. Their talons are massively powerful, and razor sharp.

 

They're utterly fearless, as most aviators would know, they see light aircraft simply as intruders onto their territory, and are often quite prepared to confront them. They love attacking and destroying drones. Samson kept every dog that sighted him, utterly cowed.

 

But even a 6kg bird hitting your aircraft when you're travelling at 90kts, is enough to do a lot of damage.

 

Wedge-tailed eagle - Wikipedia

EN.WIKIPEDIA.ORG

 

Edited 15 hours ago by onetrack

[SGM]

I'm told it was a "Crane".   These seem to be in the 4-8kg range.

Looks like it's not the first time a bird has brought down Bell 206L Longranger.  https://www.australianflying.com.au/helicopters/bird-strike-suspected-in-long-ranger-crash

I was once told landing lights "on" help birds avoid you... seems plausible.  Where I fly we have birds and roos. 

I sometimes wonder if $20 mini signal airhorn (the type used on boats) would be handy - but it would have to be mounted in a way that would be quick to activate perhaps with a pull cable for use on runway incursion or on final etc. 

Edited 5 hours ago by SGM

[facthunter]

Pelicans and Frigate birds are of a higher order when Mass comes into it.    Nev