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A R44 conducting a scenic flight was forced to land on the banks of the Parramatta River because of the ‘turbulence’ generated by a nearby helicopter.
An ATSB investigation into the incident revealed that one of the passengers described the aircraft as “rolling left and right” before “diving towards the water”.
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However, none of the three on board were injured after the pilot pulled upwards and performed a safe landing in Cabarita Park.
“Flight tests have demonstrated helicopter wake turbulence is comparatively larger and less predictable than that of fixed-wing aircraft of comparable weights,” Elaine Hargreaves, the ATSB’s acting director of transport safety, said.
“Helicopter rotor vortices can descend, remain level or climb, and the duration of their persistence can increase significantly in conducive weather conditions.”
The full report, which you can read here, concludes that the R44 was likely affected by the rotor wake of a larger helicopter when its pilot first encountered control difficulties.
On the morning of 7 April 2025, the Bankstown Helicopters-operated R44 took off from Bankstown Airport for a local scenic flight around Sydney Harbour with a pilot and two passengers on board.
About seven minutes into the flight, just as the R44 entered the Parramatta River helicopter lane, a larger EC120 helicopter suddenly appeared about 500–600 ft (150–180 m) in front of it and about 100 ft above it, according to the pilot’s estimate.
The R44 then experienced what the pilot described as very strong turbulence from a vertical motion in the atmosphere.
“In response, the pilot applied full collective to avoid the water, which caused the rotor speed to decay sufficiently for the low rotor speed warning horn to activate,” Hargreaves said.
“The pilot then sighted a suitable forced landing area at Cabarita Park and, using the helicopter’s remaining airspeed and rotor speed, manoeuvred the helicopter to the shoreline for a safe landing.”
Air traffic control primary radar data and the pilot’s report indicated that the R44 had entered the Parramatta River helicopter lane and passed over the Ryde Bridge about 9 seconds behind and slightly below the larger, three-bladed EC120.
The ATSB said guidance from the United States Helicopter Safety Team advises helicopter pilots to remain three rotor disks clear of a hovering or taxiing helicopter, and to allow 3 NM and/or 2 minutes for the rotor wake from a preceding helicopter to dissipate.
