Men survive 500ft plunge in helicopter

Press, 22 September 1980, Page 4

Men survive 500ft plunge in helicopter

PA Wellington A Taupo pilot, Joe Collins, and his two brothers celebrated their survival from a 500 ft helicopter plunge with a roast hare cooked on a camp fire as they waited 10 hours for help to arrive. Mr Collins was flying with his brothers, Edward and Stephen, over high trees in the Kaiangaroa forest on Saturday morhing when the helicopter engine failed. "I picked put a place to try to put her down—a sort of forestry track,” Mr Collins said. “I missed by about 30 yards.” “I . knew we were not going to make it. The ground rushed up; and we went

tumbling through the air.” The rotor blades chopped through foot-thick tree trunks before the Hughes 500 helicopter somersaulted on to its cabin roof, its tail ripped off. : '■■■

“The others were all piled on top of me and fuel was pouring ail over us,” Mr Collins said. “The whole thing was over in seconds.”

Surprised to find themselves alive and with no serious injury, they scrambled put of the craft and waited at a safe distance in case it burst into flames. They, were all badly bruised. Mr Collins’s face was bleeding from deep cuts and his brother, Stephen, had injured his back.

When no explosion occurred Mr Collins switched off all systems in the helicopter and they sat down to wait for help. After two hours they decided to try to walk out. But shock and hunger—they had not eaten for 24 hours—defeated them and they returned to the wreck. Edward Collins, the fittest of the three, took one of the deer-hunting rifles and went into the bush to try to shoot some dinner. He came back With two hares which they cobked over a big fire.. An hour after nightfall, a rescue helicopter arrived and flew the weary, shaken trio to hospital, where they were treated and discharged.