The pilot of a LongRanger helicopter that struck a white‑bellied sea eagle, fatally injuring the passenger, had limited opportunity to detect the bird prior to the collision, an ATSB investigation has found.
On 14 July 2025, the Bell 206L-3 LongRanger helicopter, operated by Nautilus Aviation, was being used for a series of charter flights starting from Gove Airport, NT.
On board was the pilot and a passenger, who was being transported to several sites around Arnhem Land as part of their work with a telecommunications company.
During the fourth leg of the day, between Mirrnatja and Burrum, the helicopter was flying near a waterway, about 900 ft above ground level, when the pilot heard a loud bang while looking down and to the left out of the helicopter.
The pilot then observed a large bird carcass – later identified as a white‑bellied sea eagle – between them and the passenger. The passenger had serious upper body injuries and was unresponsive.
Noting the passenger required immediate attention, the pilot deliberated landing nearby to attempt resuscitation, and initially began to descend. However, the pilot decided it would be better for the passenger to receive professional medical attention at nearby Lake Evella Aerodrome, which was adjacent to a police station.
After the pilot landed at Lake Evella Aerodrome, the passenger was attended to by police, a nurse and a doctor, but they had succumbed to their injuries.
ATSB Chief Commissioner Angus Mitchell said this tragic accident highlights the risk of birdstrikes, a relatively common, almost unavoidable hazard in aviation.
“The pilot had limited opportunity to detect the bird as they were looking down and to the left of the helicopter’s trajectory, reducing their ability to see the bird and alter the helicopter’s flight path in time, and likely rendering the collision unavoidable under the circumstances,” he said.
“Despite the injuries to the passenger and the damage to the aircraft, the pilot demonstrated composure and maintained control of the aircraft, enabling a calm and controlled return to a location where medical assistance could be provided.”
Mr Mitchell said that while birdstrikes are rarely fatal, this was the third fatal birdstrike accident in Australia in recent years.
In July 2022 a pilot was fatally injured when their Bell LongRanger was struck by a wedge‑tailed eagle near Maroota, NSW, and in September 2022 an agricultural spraying pilot was also fatally injured when their Air Tractor collided with an Australian bustard near Chinchilla, Queensland.
All three accidents highlight the risks that birdstrikes present in aviation, but also the importance of pilots being conscious of where this risk is more likely to present.
“Maintaining an effective lookout is particularly important while flying over waterways and wetlands, noting that birds present unique challenges to detect visually due to their relatively small size, unpredictable flight paths, and speed differences with aircraft.
“It also is relatively common for larger birds to attack helicopters and drones, often perceiving them as threats or territorial intruders.”
Mr Mitchell said the ATSB’s investigation also considered survivability aspects of the accident, in particular the wearing of helmets and windshield impact resistance.
The passenger was not wearing a helmet at the time of the accident, nor were they required to, and the location and nature of their injuries meant wearing a helmet was unlikely to have affected the outcome.
The helicopter, meanwhile, was fitted with standard acrylic windshields, which were not rated for impact resistance.
Helicopter manufacturers like Bell and Robinson have released birdstrike‑rated windshields that provide higher impact resistance and significantly decrease the likelihood of objects breaching the windshield upon impact.
However, these windshields have been rated to withstand a 1 kg bird strike at the aircraft’s never‑exceed speed, and this accident involved a 3 kg bird, which would likely have exceeded a birdstrike‑rated windshield’s design limits.
“Nevertheless, the ATSB encourages helicopter operators to consider whether helmets and the fitment of impact‑resistant windshields are appropriate as part of their risk assessments of their operations, particularly for operations in areas with a high probability of birdstrike,” Mr Mitchell concluded.
Read the final report: Birdstrike involving Bell 206L-3, VH-JMM, 16 km west-north-west of Lake Evella Aerodrome, Northern Territory, on 14 July 2025