Matt Wright has revealed his plans to step away from his helicopter business and the vile threats he has received in the aftermath of the crash that killed his partner.
In his first sit-down interview since the crash, Outback Wrangler elaborated on his decision to close his Helibrook business and sell his helicopters.
The move comes more than a year after his friend Chris ‘Willow’ Wilson was killed during a crocodile egg hunt in western Arnhem Land in February 2022.
Mr Wilson was attached to a Robinson R44 helicopter with a 30-metre line and a harness when it crashed. The plane was owned by Wright’s company.
Wright revealed that since the crash, his family had been subjected to vicious abuse, including death threats and vandalism at his other business – with one person having the power cut off to his home while his wife was in the house.
He said he had not been able to properly grieve the loss of his friend as “out of control” rumors continued to circulate and hurt his family.
Outback Wrangler star Matt Wright (pictured) has revealed he is leaving his helicopter company after a fatal crash last year
Wright (left with partner Kaia) said his family had received terrible threats after the crash
He said he has stepped away from his helicopter business for good.
‘I sold the helicopters. “I’m getting away from all that, I don’t want to go there again,” he said The Sunday Telegraph.
“I was publicly blamed for the death of my best friend, it’s just not worth it.”
The 44-year-old spoke of the immense pain of finding Wilson at the scene of the accident.
He flew to the crash site with former police officer Neil Mellon and prominent Darwin publican and crocodile farmer Mick Burns to discover that Wilson was dead, and discovered that the pilot, Seb Robinson, had suffered serious injuries.
“I’m getting excited because I flew there to say goodbye to my best friend,” Wright said.
“We sat with Willow until CareFlight came, we helped them load him into the machine and watched them fly him back to Darwin.
“That’s one of the hardest bloody moments of our entire lives.”
Wright is charged with seven felonies on matters not directly related to the crash, including attempting to pervert the course of justice, destroying evidence, fabricating evidence, unlawful entry and obstructing witnesses.
No charges have been filed in connection with Wilson’s death and a hearing will take place next month.
Wright said his family had faced terrifying threats and abuse in the aftermath of the crash.
“My wife Kaia was home and some food went in and shut off the power to our house, like physically cutting the utility pole,” he said.
Chris ‘Willow’ Wilson fell to his death in February 2022 when a Robinson R44 helicopter to which he was attached with a 30-metre harness crashed
‘Kaia deals with abuse in shopping centers and such. They say things like “I can’t wait for your husband to be locked up, he’s a fucking king.”
Wright said his tourism business, Matt Wright Wild Territory, had been vandalized and signs had been torn down.
“We’ve had bottles thrown through a bus before, you know, just things that get out of hand and you’re like, why?” he said.
The aviation watchdog, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB), ruled last week that the pilot had failed to refuel the Wright’s company plane, causing the engine to suddenly stop.
The investigation revealed that the helicopter’s engine stopped mid-flight and the pilot released the hooks and sway line during the emergency landing.
The height of the release, which was above nine metres, was “unlikely to be survivable” for Wilson, ATSB chief constable Angus Mitchell found.
The investigation also found that Robinson’s blood levels of cocaine were low, increasing the risk of fatigue, depression and inattention, but added that there was insufficient evidence to determine whether he was affected at the time.
Wright said the ATSB’s findings had generated mixed feelings and that rumors about the crash were “ridiculous”.
An investigation last week revealed that the helicopter’s pilot had failed to refuel the plane, causing it to stop mid-flight
He also said the “noise” surrounding the shocking incident meant he had not been able to fully accept his best friend had disappeared.
“There are certain aspects of that report that upset you because it was such a simple accident that killed Willow,” he said.
‘We didn’t want this to be true. As difficult as it is for everyone involved, there are now some answers to what happened.
“The pilot has suffered enough, he’s in a wheelchair, which is terrible, we’ve lost Willow, lives have been turned upside down, so I just want this to stop.”