Helicopter pilot Ashley Jenkinson has been remembered as a "superhero", a pillar of strength for family and friends and one taken far too young.
The 40-year-old was killed along with British couple Ron and Diane Hughes and Sydney mother Vanessa Tadros when the chopper he was flying collided with another and crashed into a sand bar near Sea World on the Gold Coast on December 2.
At least 100 people gathered to mourn the man they looked to as an inspiring role model, including his fiancee Kosha and 16-month-old son Kayden, at Southport Church of Christ on Friday afternoon.
As well as his day job conducting scenic flights, Mr Jenkinson trained other helicopter pilots and logged hundreds of flying hours helping in bushfire emergencies in the Northern Territory and floods in NSW and Queensland.
Distraught older brother Miles Jenkinson said "Ash" had been a pillar of strength for his family and friends during the hard times in their lives.
"His loss feels unbearable," he sighed.
"If there was anyone to comfort us right now, it would be him. He should be here."
Miles Jenkinson particularly remembered how Kayden's eyes would light up as he ran to his dad every time he entered a room.
He said the two of them had taken a chopper ride together for the first time in 2022, in what had been a special moment for the family.
"How many kids get to not only see their dad fly but to be taken along for the ride," he said.
"It's a memory that we will share with Kayden as he grows up so he can too understand just how much of a superhero his dad is."
Kosha said in a tribute read on her behalf that being a dad had come naturally to her partner.
He was always there to help with night feeds and changing dirty nappies, and there was never a job he wouldn't do.
"Ash was also very vocal with his appreciation and gratefulness for Kayden and I to the point I'd say 'shut up Ash, I've heard that 10 times today'," she wrote.
Kosha also remembered how, five years before the couple met, a psychic had told her he could see a man flying a helicopter coming into her life who would love her forever.
She said she and Kayden kissed Ash goodbye like it was the last time, every time he went to work. Just in case.
"Sadly, my heart is broken at the loss of my present and my future with this man ... I take comfort in the fact that the last thing we ever said to each other was 'I love you'," Kosha said.
"He's my best friend, my lover, my frustration and my reason to push through the trials and tribulations of everyday life.
"He is no longer here with us but he's still shining through my eyes and my future life with our son."
The funeral ended to the Foo Fighters hit My Hero as Mr Jenkinson's father was lifted from his wheelchair to kiss his white coffin.
Three people in his helicopter survived the crash including Ms Tadros' son Nicholas, 10, who's in a critical but stable condition in Queensland Children's Hospital.
Victorian mother Winnie de Silva, 33, and her nine-year-old son Leon are also in a stable condition in hospital.
Air Transport Safety Bureau investigators are not expected to complete their investigation into the accident until September 2024.
