Gerard Butler's helicopter footage sparks aviation review

Gerard Butler has sparked a review by aviation authorities in Australia after he shared a clip of a friend performing stunts in a helicopter on TV.

The Scottish actor has been Down Under filming a new movie, and he shared footage of his experiences in the country during an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel's talk show in June (14).

The clip, which was also uploaded to YouTube.com, shows Butler and his friends on a fishing trip as a helicopter comes in low and performs a dangerous-looking stunt close to the ground.

The actor refused to reveal the pilot's name over fears he might get in trouble, telling Kimmel, "This stuff is evidence he's insane. This is how we were flying about... We didn't even upload the best bit of this...This guy is quite a famous adventurer in Australia. I don't want to say his name. Because it was... There was a lot of stuff I couldn't put on this video. This is the tame stuff."

It has now emerged that bosses at Australia's Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) have obtained the footage and are reviewing it.

CASA spokesman Peter Gibson says, "The registration of the helicopter is unclear from the video but we are looking into it... CASA is reviewing the video of the helicopter flying near the fishing party shown on the YouTube clip. CASA always takes any information or evidence about potential unsafe flying seriously and takes the appropriate actions."

An official investigation into the stunt has yet to be launched.