Overview
- The MRH-90 Taipan ditched into waters off the Whitsundays in July 2023, killing Captain Danniel Lyon, Lieutenant Maxwell Nugent, Warrant Officer Joseph Laycock and Corporal Alexander Naggs.
- The Defence Flight Safety Bureau concluded the primary cause was spatial disorientation and found the pilots were likely fatigued, which can increase susceptibility to disorientation.
- Comcare told a Senate inquiry it has referred two briefs of evidence to the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions covering fatigue management and the TopOwl 5.10 helmet/software.
- The CDPP declined to prosecute Defence in July 2025 because it saw no reasonable prospect of conviction but said it may re-evaluate new briefs if the IGADF inquiry or a coronial inquest uncovers evidence of an offence.
- Families and former AATES test pilots allege the TopOwl 5.10 upgrade posed known risks and that testing or the DFSB report was 'paperworked over,' and senators are probing those integrity claims with a report due in September 2026.