Victorian helicopter crash victims remembered as ‘compassionate soul’ and ‘remarkable son’ (2024)

Heartbroken loved ones have paid tribute to a 50-year-old agribusiness tech CEO and 32-year-old pilot, who were among the five victims in a deadly crash north of Melbourne.

Inverloch entrepreneur Linda Woodford was on Friday named the third victim of the tragic fatal crash on Thursday.

Watch the video above for more on the delicate recovery mission

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Close friend Martin shared a touching tribute to his friend of 25 years.

“Such a beautiful, fun-loving and genuinely compassionate soul, such a loss, and such a shame for this to happen just as all her hard work was really paying off,” he wrote on social media.

“She packed a lot into her half century, and she’ll leave a big hole in so many people’s lives, including mine.”

Victorian helicopter crash victims remembered as ‘compassionate soul’ and ‘remarkable son’ (2)

The family of the pilot has spoken of its immense grief.

Dean Neal, 32, was on Friday identified as the second victim of the fatal crash on Thursday.

“Our broken hearts go to the families and friends of those who were flying with him,” his family said in a statement.

“Your unspeakable loss is understood by us all. We know Dean would have done anything in his power to deliver his passengers safely to their destination.

“The family will not be making any further statement and ask that we be left to grieve the loss of our Dean, who was a remarkable son, brother, friend and pilot.”

Victorian helicopter crash victims remembered as ‘compassionate soul’ and ‘remarkable son’ (3)

Meat industry boss Paul Troja, 73, was earlier identified was one of the passengers on the Thursday morning flight.

The trip was due to be one the abattoir industry leader’s last before retirement.

They were flying with two men from New South Wales, aged 59 and 70.

Investigation underway

The cause of the crash is not yet known.

ATSB Chief Commissioner Angus Mitchell told 7NEWS.com.au a team had arrived at the crash site.

“Activities over coming days may include surveying the site potentially with the use of a drone, examining and documenting witness marks such as scarring to help establish how the helicopter impacted the terrain, and retrieving relevant components for further examination, such as aircraft avionics with any recording capabilities.

“This is the fifth fatal aviation accident this year in Australia and, tragically, nine people have lost their lives across these accidents.

“All five accidents are being investigated by the ATSB. As with all our investigations, we will endeavour to understand the contributing factors, and discover and share any safety issues which can be addressed, to prevent repeat occurrences in the future.”

Victorian helicopter crash victims remembered as ‘compassionate soul’ and ‘remarkable son’ (4)

He said that a preliminary report would be prepared over the next sit to eight weeks.

Some experts suggest the weather will prove to be a major factor in the crash as there was low-lying cloud during the flight.

“The Microflite has an excellent safety record and the helicopter itself also has an excellent safety record,” Aviation Editor Geoff Thomas told Sunrise.

“I think that they’re going to be looking very closely at weather factors in this.

“It could have possibly been an engine failure, but again, the helicopter has a great safety record and the company does as well, so I think they’re going to zero in on the weather as being a contributing factor to this terrible tragedy.”

Victorian helicopter crash victims remembered as ‘compassionate soul’ and ‘remarkable son’ (5)

7NEWS understands the young pilot’s four passengers were all Victorian meat farmers, who were heading north to purchase cattle.

The wreckage was able to be viewed from above on Friday and a large blue tarp was covering the site.

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Delicate recovery mission

Police described the scene as “confronting” and have brought in specialist crews to try to reach the wreckage from the ground in the dense bushland.

The site was first found and accessed by PolAir and crews were winched down to check for survivors, but it was too difficult to reach the aircraft from the ground.

Victorian helicopter crash victims remembered as ‘compassionate soul’ and ‘remarkable son’ (6)

Now the SES and Department of Environment Land, Water and Planning (DELWP) are using bulldozers and excavators to clear a path to the wreckage.

Kevin McEvoy from the Australian Maritime Safety Authority said teams would be working very closely with police on Friday as the investigation was launched.

Colleagues devastated

The helicopter was operated by Victorian family-owned business Microflite Helicopter Services, which offers premium tours, charter flights and aircraft services.

Microflite executive general manager Rodney Higgins confirmed one of the business’s “highly respected” pilots was operating the flight.

Staff have been left shaken by the loss of a much-loved colleague and all services have been suspended until Tuesday.

Victorian helicopter crash victims remembered as ‘compassionate soul’ and ‘remarkable son’ (2024)
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