Cairns hotel helicopter crash: Major twist after pilot killed By Candace Sutton for Daily Mail Australia Published: 00:27, 12 August 2024 | Updated: 00:43, 12 August 2024 e-mail View comments A helicopter pilot has been killed after his aircraft crashed into a luxury Cairns hotel and injured two guests with hundreds forced to evacuate the burning building. Emergency services were called to the Double Tree Hotel by Hilton in the Far North Queensland city at 1.50am on Monday.
Queensland Ambulance confirmed a helicopter 'crashed into the roof of a hotel' with between 300 to 400 people evacuated from the premises. The pilot, a man aged in his 40s, was killed while two people who were staying in one of the rooms were rushed to hospital to be treated for smoke inhalation. It is believed the helicopter was part of the fleet of Nautilus Aviation, one of Australia’s premier helicopter operators Sources said that the helicopter may have been 'stolen', as none of the accredited pilots working for Nautilus Aviation were flying the aircraft.
'All the pilots have been accounted for,' the source told Daily Mail Australia. Nautilus Aviation told the Courier Mail it was an 'unauthorised' flight. The helicopter crashed into the roof of the Double Tree Hotel by Hilton in Cairns, and sparked a massive inferno (pictured) About 300 to 400 people were evacuated from the hotel.
Others stood in a park nearby and watched on in disbelief as the blaze tore through the building Veronica, who witnessed .