A rookie helicopter company worker got so drunk celebrating a promotion, he had to be “put to bed” by colleagues — before he swiped a chopper and died by crashing into an Australian hotel, according to reports.
Blake Wilson, 23, partied Sunday night at a bash in Cairns celebrating his promotion at Nautilus Aviation, where he had been working as a ground crew employee for four months, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).
He got so “intoxicated,” he had to be “put to bed” by co-workers, witnesses told the Daily Mail.
Wilson — who had a pilot’s license in New Zealand but was not permitted to fly in Australia — then got up and “gained unauthorized access” to a hangar and “misappropriated” an R44 Robinson helicopter, the company said.
He hovered over a no-fly zone above the central business district before crashing into the roof of DoubleTree by Hilton just before 2 a.m. Monday, officials said.
Wilson was killed as the chopper crashed and smashed the windows of several rooms.
A woman in her 70s and man in his 80s were taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation.
Nautilus Aviation CEO Aaron Finn confirmed that off-duty pilots and other employees gathered Sunday night for dinner and drinks to celebrate Wilson’s recent promotion.
AP
“This was a privately organized send-off for the individual involved in Monday morning’s incident, who was recently promoted to a ground crew position at another one of our bases,” Finn said.
“This was not a work event and had been coordinated by friends.”
Cairns Airport said an initial review indicated security had not been compromised.
Facebook / Blake Wilson
“Our thoughts are with all affected by the distressing incident at Cairns Esplanade,” CEO Richard Barker said in a statement.
“Cairns Airport operates under a federally approved, multi-layered transport security program. To reassure our community, we wish to confirm a review has been conducted, showing no compromise of our airport fence or access points.”
