澳大利亚国防部高级军官否认了有关2023年7月28日惠特桑迪群岛MRH-90直升机坠毁调查的掩盖指控[1]。该事故在"塔利斯曼军刀"演习期间发生，造成Captain Danniel Lyon、Lieutenant Maxwell Nugent、Warrant Officer Class Two Joseph Laycock和Corporal Alexander Naggs四名士兵丧生[1]。
官方调查结论认定事故主要原因是飞行员的空间定向丧失[1]。然而，前Taipan试飞员退役Major Ian Wilson对调查的公正性提出质疑，称调查过程被"腐蚀"[1]。澳大利亚工作健康安全监管机构已向公诉局提交两份证据摘要，涉及疲劳管理和TopOwl头盔系统相关问题[1]。
空军副总长Tim Innes在听证会上表示："我不知道存在任何形式的掩盖"[1]。
Australian defence officials have dismissed allegations of a cover-up into the investigation of a military helicopter crash that killed four soldiers in July 2023.[1] Air Vice-Marshal Tim Innes stated, "I'm not aware of any cover-up of any sort," during parliamentary proceedings addressing the incident.[1] The MRH-90 aircraft went down on July 28, 2023, in Queensland's Whitsunday Islands during Exercise Talisman Sabre, claiming the lives of Captain Danniel Lyon, Lieutenant Maxwell Nugent, Warrant Officer Class Two Joseph Laycock, and Corporal Alexander Naggs.[1]
The official investigation concluded that the crash's primary cause was spatial disorientation experienced by the pilot.[1] However, retired Major Ian Wilson, a former Taipan test pilot, has challenged the integrity of the inquiry, claiming it was "corrupted."[1] Concerns about the investigation's impartiality have extended to the families of those who died.[1] The Australian workplace safety regulator has submitted two evidence summaries to the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions, focusing on fatigue management procedures and the TopOwl helmet system used in the aircraft.[1]