John Bean, Gary Ticehurst and Paul Lockyer
Remembering John Bean, Paul Lockyer and Gary Ticehurst
The documentary Lake Eyre is now available to watch on iview
Ten years ago today the ABC lost three of its best when the helicopter carrying camera operator John Bean, reporter Paul Lockyer and pilot Gary Ticehurst crashed on the edge of Lake Eyre.
The three were working on a news documentary, one of a series of expeditions to capture footage of Australia's spectacular inland waterway and tell stories of the outback.
To mark this sad anniversary, the ABC has made available on iview the documentary Lake Eyre, which showcases some of their beautiful work and includes a tribute to the three men.
John Bean was an award-winning cameraman and masterful craftsman who worked for the ABC for two decades in Australia and internationally. He attended Griffith Film School and Griffith University awards the ABC John Bean ACS Memorial Scholarship for Cinematography in his honour.
Paul Lockyer was one of the ABC's most experienced and respected journalists. In a career spanning more than 40 years, starting as an ABC cadet in Perth, he reported from all over the world and covered some of the biggest stories in Australia and abroad.
Gary Ticehurst was the ABC's lead helicopter pilot. In almost 40 years of flying he logged more than 16,000 hours at the controls and contributed to thousands of stories. He was the embodiment of all the people who work so hard behind the scenes.
"The loss of Paul, John and Gary was absolutely devastating," said ABC Director, News Gaven Morris. "To many of us they were good friends as well as colleagues.
"It was a terrible blow that will always be deeply felt. All at the ABC extend our deepest condolences to their families and friends."
[Details on watching Lake Eyre on iview]
