The helicopter pilot who crashed a stolen aircraft into a seafront hotel had been “put to bed” after a night of drinking before taking off on his fatal flight.
Blake Wilson, 23, was behind the controls of a Robinson R44 helicopter when it crashed into the roof of the DoubleTree by Hilton in Cairns at about 1.50am on Monday.
The helicopter was seen hovering for at least five minutes in the city centre before crashing into the roof of the hotel, shattering windows in nearby rooms.
Two guests, a man in his 80s and a woman in her 70s, were taken to hospital for smoke inhalation.
Nautilus Aviation, which employed the pilot as a ground crew member, said he had gained unauthorized access to a helicopter in its hangar after attending an unofficial farewell event.
Daily Mail Australia understands Mr Wilson was “intoxicated” at the celebratory dinner and had to be put to bed.
Mr Wilson, originally from Palmerston North on New Zealand’s North Island, obtained his private pilot licence from Christchurch Helicopters in April 2022, which employs New Zealand’s most famous All Blacks rugby player, Richie McCaw, among its pilots and instructors.
In a statement, Christchurch Helicopters said Wilson had a New Zealand pilot’s licence but had never flown in Australia and was not authorised to operate a Nautilus Aviation helicopter.
“Blake completed his Diploma of Aviation with Christchurch Helicopters in 2022,” the statement said.
Cairns hotel crash pilot Blake Wilson is having fun with friends in New Zealand before heading off to Australia on his “new adventure”. It all ended in tragedy when he stole a helicopter after a night of drinking
Nautilus helicopter in the hangar where Blake Wilson stole an R44 Robinson aircraft in the early hours of Monday morning and flew it for four minutes before crashing into the Double Tree
‘He was well liked by the staff and his classmates.
“He will be missed by the team at Christchurch Helicopters and our thoughts are with his family and friends at this time.”
Wilson’s Instagram page shows him standing proudly next to a helicopter at Christchurch Helicopter headquarters in September 2022 and declaring that he was “officially a commercial helicopter pilot”.
He moved to Cairns with his girlfriend in March this year and interviewed with several different helicopter charter companies before landing the job at Nautilus Aviation, which operates from seven bases in northern Australia.
In April, he posted a photo of the Cairns Esplanade, with the DoubleTree Hilton hotel he crashed into this week featured prominently in the middle of the image.
Alongside the photo, he wrote: “New home in Far North Queensland. Excited to see what this adventure holds for us.”
A fire breaks out on the roof of the Cairns Hotel (left) after Blake Wilson crashed the helicopter into the roof. Rugby legend Richie McCaw (right) is one of the pilots at Christchurch Helicopters, where Blake Wilson trained in New Zealand
The Cairns Double Tree Hilton (circled) was at the centre of a photo Blake posted on Instagram, writing: “Excited to see what this adventure brings.”
A week later, he posted a photo of himself with six friends at nearby Cairns bar Gilligans.
He spent more than four months working at the company’s base in Cairns before being promoted to work as a bunker for Nautilus on Horn Island off Australia’s Top End, where he was due to start on Monday.
Company colleagues organised a farewell dinner and drinks for Mr Wilson on Sunday night, just hours before he was due to take off on his fatal flight.
A witness told media that Mr Wilson was “intoxicated” at the celebratory dinner and had to be put to bed.
It is understood that at some point later in the evening, he left his room and got behind the wheel of a Nautilus vehicle which he then drove to the company’s headquarters at Cairns Airport.
Blake Wilson is photographed enjoying a night out after moving to Cairns
Fatal flight path of New Zealander Blake Wilson, who stole a Robinson R44 helicopter from Cairns Airport and crashed it into the Double Tree Hotel in Cairns four minutes later
Questions have now been raised about security at the airport and how he was able to access the helicopter so late at night.
“The security measures at that airport are the same as at most, if not all, general aviation airports in Australia. So in my opinion it’s probably worth a review,” said aviation expert Peter Carter.
‘It’s an inside job, so it’s very difficult to create security mechanisms to prevent that kind of thing from happening.
“The company could consider different levels of access depending on the seniority of the employee… it should come to its own conclusions as to the security measures it takes, in my opinion.”
Cairns Airport said an initial review indicated access to the site had not been compromised.
“Our thoughts are with everyone affected by the distressing incident on Cairns Esplanade,” chief executive Richard Barker said in a statement.
‘Cairns Airport operates under a multi-layered federally approved transportation security program.
‘To reassure our community, we wish to confirm that a review has been carried out which shows no compromise to the airport fence or access points.’