Western Riverina helicopter crash: One man dead after Super Puma goes down travelling Broken Hill to Albury

A US-registered helicopter has crashed in Australia, killing one man and seriously injuring another.

Around 12pm on Friday, emergency services were called to Corrong Road, One Tree, about 40km west of Hay, following reports of a helicopter crash.

On arrival, crews located a passenger, a man believed to be in his 40s. NSW Ambulance Paramedics attempted to treat the man, however, he died at the scene.

The man is yet to be formally identified.

The pilot, a 39-year-old man was treated for minor injuries and was taken to Melbourne Hospital.

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) confirmed in a statement that an emergency locator transmitter (ELT) distress beacon signal was received around 10am on Friday from a US-registered Super Puma helicopter.

ASMA said there were “two people on board, on a ferry flight from Broken Hill to Albury in New South Wales”

“AMSA tasked a Victorian Air Ambulance HEMS helicopter from Bendigo and the AMSA Essendon-based Challenger rescue aircraft to initiate a search.”

A sky diving team were deployed and located the wreck in NSW.

“A crime scene has been established by officers attached to Murrumbidgee Police District and an investigation into the cause of the crash will be undertaken by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB),” NSW Police said in a statement.

A report will be prepared for the information of the coroner.

“The ATSB is deploying a team of transport safety investigators with expertise in helicopter maintenance and engineering, flying operations, and data recovery and analysis to the accident site, where they are expected to arrive on Saturday,” an ATSB spokesperson said.

“Once on site over coming days they will examine and map the site and wreckage, recover recording devices, and retrieve any components deemed necessary for further examination in the ATSB’s technical facilities in Canberra.”