What happened
On the morning of 3 September 2025, a Eurocopter AS 350 was conducting agricultural spraying operations in the Holbrook, New South Wales, area.
In preparation for the second run for the day, the pilot conducted a hazard reconnaissance of a 14‑hectare paddock and identified wires to the west, a road to the east and livestock in the corners of neighbouring paddocks.
The helicopter was fitted with a GPS navigational system which also featured a wire detection system designed to alert the pilot when the aircraft is approaching a mapped wire. The wire was correctly mapped in the aircraft GPS system.
Once spraying operations had commenced, the pilot reported that they were focusing on the spray as well as the stock in the neighbouring property which was at the end of their run. This resulted in them losing sight of the already identified wires in the spraying run overshoot area. Shortly after the dispensing had been completed, the pilot entered the neighbouring paddock and saw the wires. However, with little time to respond, the helicopter’s skids struck a wire resulting in damage to the tail rotor. The helicopter then began vibrating violently and rotated to the left, entering multiple 360° turns before it collided with terrain, rolled onto its right side and caught fire. The pilot was able to exit the passenger door of the helicopter and sustained minor burn injuries. The helicopter was destroyed by post-impact fire (Figure 1).
Figure 1: Post-impact damage
Source: NSW Police
Safety message
Despite the hazard assessment and the systems in place to warn about the wires, in this occurrence the distraction of the stock in the neighbouring paddocks diverted the pilot’s attention resulting in them losing sight of the wires.
Research by the ATSB has shown that 63% of pilots were aware of the position of the wire before they struck it.[1]
In association with the Aerial Application Association of Australia (AAAA), the ATSB released an educational booklet, Wirestrikes involving known wires: A manageable aerial agriculture hazard (AR-2011-028). This booklet contains details of multiple wirestrike accidents, lessons learned, and a number of strategies to help agricultural pilots manage the ongoing risk of wirestrikes during spraying operations. The booklet notes that focusing attention on non‑operational tasks or focusing on operational tasks at the wrong time can affect pilots’ hazard avoidance, detection and reaction times, and that all pilots, no matter the level of experience, can get distracted.
About this report
Decisions regarding whether to conduct an investigation, and the scope of an investigation, are based on many factors, including the level of safety benefit likely to be obtained from an investigation. For this occurrence, no investigation has been conducted and the ATSB did not verify the accuracy of the information. A brief description has been written using information supplied in the notification and any follow-up information in order to produce a short summary report, and allow for greater industry awareness of potential safety issues and possible safety actions.
[1] ATSB research and analysis report B2005/0055, Wire-strike Accidents in General Aviation: Data Analysis 1994 to 2004, available at www.atsb.gov.au.