Hundreds evacuated as helicopter crashes into roof of Hilton hotel in Australia

Owner says helicopter was on an ‘unauthorised flight’ at time of incident

A fire burns at the Double Tree Hotel after a helicopter crashed into the roof in Cairns (Reuters)

A helicopter has crashed into the roof of a Hilton hotel in a popular northern Australian tourist town, killing the pilot and sending debris flying across the grounds and into the swimming pool.

The crash occurred at around 2am on Monday at the Double Tree Hotel, a Hilton chain, in Cairns, a major gateway to Australia’s Great Barrier Reef.

The twin-engine helicopter collided with the hotel roof, causing a fire to break out and prompting the evacuation of hundreds of guests, Queensland police said in a statement.

Police said forensic investigations were underway to formally identify the pilot. He was declared dead at the scene.

The helicopter had been taken from its hangar at Cairns airport for an “unauthorised flight”, they said, but did not elaborate on his reasons for making the flight or how it was approved for take off.

“There is no further threat to the community, and we believe this is an isolated incident,” Queensland Police Service acting chief superintendent, Shane Holmes, said.

The owner of the helicopter, Nautilus Aviation, also said the aircraft was on an “unauthorised” flight at the time of the crash, adding that they are working closely with the Australian Transport Safety Bureau and other authorities as they investigate the incident.

Two of the helicopter’s rotor blades came off and one landed in the hotel pool, media reports said.

“There were no injuries sustained by people on the ground,” the police statement said.

A broken window and damaged rooftop is seen at the Double Tree by Hilton Hotel after a helicopter crashed into its roof in Cairns, Australia, on 12 August 2024 (EPA)

Emergency services work at the Double Tree by Hilton Hotel after helicopter crash (EPA)

A forensic crash unit will work with Australia’s transport safety regulator to prepare an accident report, police said.

Cairns Airport chief executive Richard Barker said initial findings of a review on Monday showed “no compromise of the airport security programme or processes”.

Between 300 and 400 people were evacuated from the hotel building. At 5.30pm, the hotel was still closed, with guests moved elsewhere, said staff at the reception desk of Hilton’s Double Tree Hotel in Cairns. It remains cordoned off, as officials examined its structural integrity.

A man in his 80s and a woman in her 70s, who were taken to hospital in a stable condition, have been discharged, reported state broadcaster ABC.

“They were very stressed because, you know, their window had shattered in their room,” said Jill Ball, who was staying at the hotel with her husband Robert at the time of the crash.

“I was lucky enough that I put my clothes on, but some poor people came out in bare feet and pajamas,” she told The Guardian. She said her hotel room was diagonally opposite to where the crash occurred.

The couple could see flames after the collision, Ms Ball told the newspaper. They were initially told to wait in their room but soon asked to evacuate.

“It was just such a mess, in as much as there was no communication, it was so disorganised.”

Appreciating the bus driver from a tour group, she told the paper he was driving people to the evacuation point, taking them at the direction of the police.

“He was doing runs back and forwards and backwards, and he was really the only source of information we had...was just such a hero, he was very kind and caring.”

Another guest, Amanda Kay, told BBC News that she saw the helicopter flying “extra low” before it “turned round and hit the building”.

Another tourist, Alastair Salmon, described it to the ABC as “a colossal ear-deafening bang”.

Queensland Ambulance senior operations supervisor Caitlin Denning told the Australian Association Press that it was “too unsafe for us to enter the hotel”.

Queensland police had earlier declared it an exclusion zone.