Pictured: Horrific head injury suffered by man after mammoth humpback whale smashed into a charter boat off the Queensland coast

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A man has suffered a horrific cut to his head after a mammoth humpback whale crashed into an 8.5 metre charter boat off the Queensland coast.

A-One Fishing Charter owner Oliver Galea, 44, was among four people injured in the incident, suffering a laceration to his forward that required eight stitches.

The mammal that hit the boat was believed to be 'three times the size' of the vessel, striking it Saturday afternoon during its return to Airlie Beach. 

Oliver Galea, 44, (pictured) suffered a laceration to his forehead  on Saturday when a humpback whale struck his A-One Fishing Charters' boat

The mammoth humpback whale was believed to be 'three times the size' of the 8.5m vessel and its force knocked two men unconscious (stock photo)

Four men were taken to hospital following the terrifying incident where the boat was 'thrown into the air' knocking two men unconscious.

Mr Galea hit his head on the front railing of the boat, suffering a deep wound.

He said the six-person crew first thought they had run into a shipping container, as the incident happened so suddenly.

'We were only going about 45km/h, there were no blow holes and we didn’t see any whales,' he told The Townsville Bulletin.   

'All of a sudden its (the whale) thrown the boat out of the water and it’s come crashing down.

'Within a split second everyone was just down on the ground, we didn’t know what had happened.' 

A RACQ Rescue helicopter was diverted to the scene but the situation was considered to dangerous to winch the men to safety, so the air service followed the boat back to Abel Point Marina. 

Mr Galea (pictured) received a significant cut to his head after hitting it on front railing of the boat, with three other men also injured when the boat was 'thrown into the air'

A RACQ Rescue helicopter was diverted to the scene to assist the injured men, including Mr Galea (pictured), but the situation was considered to dangerous to winch them to safety

The injured crew were met and treated by paramedics at the Marina around 6pm. 

The whale's impact left a considerable dent in the boat's port side, and took out one of the engines, Mr Galea said.

'On the GPS coordinates there’s a gap when it (the boat) left the water,' he said.

Three other men also suffered injuries from the incident, with one person sustaining a broken nose and another suffering broken ribs and a laceration to his arm.

A fourth person was also taken to Proserpine Hospital with facial fractures, as well as suspected spinal injuries that were later cleared. 

A-One Fishing Charters has only been operating for a month, offering diving, snorkelling, fishing, island transfers and whale watching in the Whitsundays. 

Mr Galea said that although the incident had shaken the crew, they would be back on the water soon.

'At first we all sort of panicked (but) we’ll be back out on the water by the end of the week,' he said. 

The whale's impact left a considerable dent in the boat's port side (similar to the vessel shown) and took out one of the engines

A-One Fishing Charter's has only been operating for a month, but Mr Galea said that although the incident had shaken the crew, they would be back on the water soon (stock photo)

Mr Galea's partner Rachel Carpenter told The Whitsunday Times that the group were lucky the incident had not turned out worse.

'If it had capsized or if it was a fibre glass boat it would have sunk,' she said.

'God was on our side because they didn't capsize or get broken into bits, we were just so lucky.'

She told the publication that it had made for a very interesting story when explaining it to the company's insurance provider.

'When I was talking to the insurance company and told them that our boat hit a whale they said "WHAT?" But they have been amazing,' Ms Carpenter said. 

Volunteer Marine Rescue, the Water Police and Maritime safety were all involved in the incident. 

'When I was talking to the insurance company and told them that our boat hit a whale they said "WHAT?" But they have been amazing,' Mr Galea's partner Rachel Carpenter told the Whitsunday Times (stock photo)