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The deaths of two New Zealanders in an American helicopter crash have come as a cruel blow to family members who have already lost two other relatives in aviation accidents.
James Innes, 59, and his son Andrew Innes, 30, died on Sunday when their Hughes 500D crashed minutes after taking off from the Carbon County Airport in Utah. A third man, George McDaniel, 40, from Idaho Falls, also died.
James Innes, who used to own Haldon Station on the shores of Lake Benmore in the Mackenzie Country, was reportedly flying the helicopter home from a three-day fishing trip when it went down shortly after refuelling.
Mr Innes moved to America about 17 years ago and is survived by his second wife Debbie. His ex-wife Belinda lives in Wanaka and an older son, Michael, lives in Auckland.
Andrew Innes had been working in Chicago and only just moved closer to his father in Salt Lake City after getting married in Wanaka this year. He leaves behind an American wife of just four months.
The tragedy is the third of its kind for the Innes family, most of whom live in South Canterbury.
In the 1970s, James Innes's brother Dave was killed when he was hit by a plane while working on an airport runway.
Ten years ago his eldest son, Dan, was killed in a helicopter accident with two other New Zealanders while rounding up sheep in a Hughes 500.
Yesterday the Innes family were struggling to deal with yet another aviation disaster, with relatives saying it was "unreal" that it could happen again to the same family.
"It's bloody nasty," said Mr Innes's cousin Peter Innes. "James' eldest son was killed in New Mexico in a helicopter accident and now he and his youngest have both had the same bloody fate. Everyone is just walking around in disbelief, really."
Peter Innes, who is also Andrew Innes's godfather, said it was particularly difficult for his godson's mother, Belinda, who had now lost two of three sons in helicopter crashes.
"She's just totally stunned ... She's devastated, really."
Peter Innes said it was too early to say what would happen about funeral arrangements, especially since both men's wives lived in America.
James Innes moved to America in the early 1990s. He cornered the market in wildlife-recovery operations for various North American agencies and had his own helicopter business. He had been a pilot for many years.
In New Zealand, he will be remembered for pioneering irrigation, deer development and cattle group breeding at Haldon Station, which he inherited from his father in the 1970s but was forced to sell because of financial difficulties.
Peter Innes, a pilot himself, also has three sons who fly with helicopters. He said the latest accident would probably not deter him from flying.
