North Queensland Cowboys honor four ADF victims of horror helicopter crash near Hamilton Island during routine army exercise
- Cowboys paid tribute to four members of the armed forces who died
- Followed crash from helicopter training in Queensland on July 28
- Images of the quartet on the big screen just before kick-off in Townsville
The North Queensland Cowboys have paid tribute to the four members of the Australian military who were killed in a helicopter exercise last month.
Before a packed house in Townsville on Saturday afternoon, footage of Lieutenant Maxwell Nugent, Corporal Alex Naggs, Petty Officer Class Two Phillip Laycock and Captain Danniel Lyon were shown on the big screen just before kickoff against the Broncos.
Tragically, the quartet was killed after their Taipan MRH-90 helicopter crashed at around 10:30 p.m. on July 28 near Lindeman Island, near Hamilton Island in Queensland.
The scene was said to be “consistent with a catastrophic, powerful crash.”
Lieutenant General Greg Bilton told reporters this week that the search and recovery mission has identified “further debris” in the ocean off Hamilton Island.
The North Queensland Cowboys paid tribute (pictured above) on Saturday to the four members of the Australian Force who died in a helicopter crash in Queensland last month
The big-screen tribute was played just before the Cowboys and Broncos went head-to-head in Townsville (Cowboys fullback Scott Drinkwater is pictured, center
“Unfortunately, I can confirm that human remains have also been sighted at this location by a remote underwater vehicle,” he said.
“Due to the nature of the debris field, positive identification of the remains is unlikely to occur until we recover more of the wreckage.”
Bilton also stated that the helicopter’s cockpit and large parts of the fuselage were 40 meters below the surface.
Captain Lyon was also a popular member of the Hermit Park Tigers senior AFL team – and will be remembered in this weekend’s derby clash against the Curra Swans.
“We’re going to form a circle in the middle of the ground and take out an Army guernsey and a Hermit Park guernsey and we’ll pay our respects there,” good friend Sam Tonkes told the Townsville Bulletin.
Australian Army Private Corporal Alex Naggs, (pictured, left) Lieutenant Maxwell Nugent and Warrant Officer Class 2 Joseph Laycock (right) were all killed during the training exercise on 28 July
“Danniel was a very good friend of mine. I served in the army with him myself and he was a very good guy and a very good football player.
“He was also a highly respected soldier.”
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the crash was a “stark reminder” that there were no “easy or safe” days for Australians serving their country.
The disaster unfolded during Talisman Saber military exercises involving more than 30,000 personnel, including from the US and several other countries.