Heartbroken son pays tribute to pilot father killed in chopper crash
A son has paid tribute to his father who died protecting public and property from a raging bushfire, when his waterbombing helicopter crashed into trees on the New South Wales south coast on Friday.
Allan Tull was an experienced pilot who lived in the skies for almost three decades. His passion for flying saw him travel the world from New Zealand to New Guinea.
“Dad, we’ve always seen him as well invincible in the chopper really. He’s one of those guys who’s been around doing it for that long,” his son Joseph Tully said.
But just after 2pm on Friday the Kawasaki BK177 was loading up with water in Woodstock when the cable snared a tree – pulling the aircraft to the ground.
Allan was killed instantly.
“He was my best friend really. We’d call each other three times a day,” Joseph said.
On Saturday his family shared a few laughs and tears as they remembered the 57-year-old, but his popularity wasn’t limited to his family.
“Today our friend died. You won’t know his name but he has been protecting us for his whole life,” Rachel Stark wrote online.
“He’s one of those guys that someone called him he’s on the plane the next day,” his son Joseph said.
The death of Allan Tull or Tully as he was known has rocked the Sydney Helicopters family.
They say that not only was he an extremely experienced but he had a unique set of skills like no one else.
Mark Harrold from Sydney Helicopters said,” You know he was so well respected.”
The ATSB was at the crash site on Saturday.
An investigation is now underway.
