Bali chopper crash: Aussie survivor Chris Marrot-Castellat breaks silence on sightseeing flight which saw everyone on board escape with minor injuries

An Aussie who miraculously survived a horrific helicopter crash has told how he helped pull fellow survivors from the wreckage.

Chris Marrot-Castellat, 49, from Perth, had been on an afternoon sightseeing flight with three other passengers and the pilot in Bali on Friday to help celebrate his friend Russell Harris’ 46th birthday.

But the helicopter struck trouble shortly after take-off.

Mr Marrot-Castellat recalled hearing ‘crunching, banging and cracking’ sounds as the chopper started to go down.

The helicopter crashed between cliffs near Suluban Beach, west of South Kuta, after the string of a kite becoming entangled in the aircraft’s rotor blades. 

‘I think we travelled for about three minutes and I felt the chopper drop roughly 20 to 30metres,’ Mr Marrot-Castellat told 9 News.

‘Essentially we had a bit of a rollercoaster loop downwards and that’s when I realised, “Wow, this is real”.’

An army veteran with helicopter experience, he knew what to do once the chopper hit the ground.

The 49-year-old turned off the engine, as well as unbuckling himself, Mr Harris’ partner Kayla and the photographer. 

‘I thought maybe he was dead because there was no response from him. I heard Kayla screaming that she couldn’t breathe,’ he said.

The Perth father said the outcome could have been very different and the group got the ‘best out of the worst situation’.

Mr Harris, also from Perth previously told Nine News that the helicopter pilot didn’t see the kite in time, before the choppper hit trees, a cliff and then flipped upside down.

Although Mr Marrot-Castellat was rushed to hospital, he walked away with some bumps and bruises.

The Perth father (pictured bottom right with friend Russell Harris) managed to escape the crash without significant injuries

The helicopter crashed between cliffs after a kite got caught in its rotator blades (pictured the crash scene)

Once he phoned his family in Perth, his son Jacob said he was imagining  the worst case scenario. 

‘I know he’s able to talk but I’m not sure how bad his injuries were,’ Jacob told Nine News.

‘I believe there was something guiding that, because what are the chances?

‘I did ask dad, “Was it like Black Hawk Down, was it like that movie?” and he said, “Yeah essentially”.

‘I believe there was something guiding that.’ 

Mr Marrot-Castellat, Mr Harris and Kayla have since released from hospital.