Helicopter

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    Utility Crew Perish in Cable Connection

    The DBS Helicopters Bell 206L-3 LongRanger III helicopter in Silt, Colorado, that got tangled in power cables doing Holy Cross Energy powerline inspections crashed, killing the pilot and crew.

    The accident occurred at 11:20 a.m. where the shared Holy Cross and Xcel Energy power lines cross Dry Hollow Road about 1.6 miles south of Silt. There were witnesses who saw the accident and attempted to help.

    The poles that were being inspected were fifty feet high, and the helicopter was supposed to be flying thirty feet over that.

    The small fifty-foot debris field is on rough hilly terrain.

    Owner and chief pilot for DBS Helicopters, Doug Sheffer died in the accident. He had 22 years and 8,000 hours of flight time. Larry Shaffer who worked for Holy Cross Energy and Christopher Gaskill who worked for HotShot Infrared Inspections were also fatalities. They were filming the trouble spots along the route, and recording the locations on GPS.

    I do not want to diminish the tragedy of this accident by saying that helicopter accidents such as this are common, but I will say they happen too frequently, even when the pilot has significant experience flying in mountain terrain, and rescue.

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    Helicopter Skids Down German Slope


    On January 26, 2014, a Deutsche Rettungsflugwacht e.V. Eurocopter EC135 P2 flew a medical evacuation of a skiing accident victim.

    The pilot aborted two landings that were too steep, and had landed on the third try on the snow-covered hill near a ski run in Oberwiesenthal.

    The pilot had just left the helicopter when it slid under its own weight thirty meters into the valley, and collided with a post and a vehicle, and sustained damage. There were skiers around as the helicopter slid by but they managed to get out of the way. There were no casualties except for the rotor blade of the helicopter. The investigation is underway.

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    Compensation Begins

    Without their admission of fault, compensation has begun by Bond Aviation Group whose helicopter crashed the Clutha pub in Glasgow and injured dozens and killed ten.

    A statement by Bond Aviation Group said that “Most claims should be capable of being settled without delay…However, for complex claims which may take longer to resolve, and where appropriate, we will make interim payments without the need for each party to apply to the court.”

    After the accident, Eurocopter issued a Safety Information Notice.

    17-Dec-2013

    Eurocopter has issued a Safety Information Notice (SIN) to operators of the EC135 across the world regarding the issue involving the fuel indication and alert system discovered by Bond during normal service operations on Wednesday 11th, which we immediately reported to Eurocopter and the appropriate authorities. The SIN states: “Following this incident, fuel system functionality tests performed by Bond Air Services and two other EC135 operators in Europe have revealed possible similar supply-tank fuel gauging errors on some aircraft.”

    As soon as we discovered this issue, in line with our commitment to the highest standards of safety, we took the prudent decision to temporarily suspend service operations whilst we conducted checks on our fleet of EC135s. The results of these tests were subsequently validated by Eurocopter, and appropriate repairs made before returning the aircraft to service. We also took the decision to increase safety barriers by mandating that all our EC135s should maintain a minimum of 90kg of fuel onboard at all times. All our EC135 aircraft are now fully operational and are available for missions with our air ambulance and police customers.

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    Life Jacket with AirPocket Can Save Lives


    The Lifejacket Airpocket Plus (LAP) combined lifejacket and hybrid rebreather is a lifesaver. Imagine a life jacket that lets you breathe air. Genius, right? I’ve seen too many helicopter crashes to and from oil rigs. Some of those fatalities should be preventable. This hybrid life jacket would really come in handy to have on a Super Puma helicopter plunging into the North Sea, or the Gulf of Mexico. I hope I’m never in that situation, but if I am, you can bet I’ll be wearing one, and I’ll have read the directions.

    A couple of lives may not have been saved with it simply because of directions.

    A rebreather is an apparatus that absorbs the carbon dioxide of exhaled breath to permit the recycling of available oxygen. The hybrid unit is a little something extra.

    The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) believes the instructions on how to use this device need to include the information that the rebreather has an air supply; so if someone is in the middle of drowning, they don’t have to be going down with a last breath of air. The rebreather already has some. It’s not like a scuba diving tank with loads of air, but hey, it’s a way to breathe if you’re submerged in a helicopter and don’t have gills. What if all you need is just enough air to keep you alive to get the seatbelt off, or to swim out of an opening? That’s some precious air, all right.

    So kudos to the revised pre-flight briefing material. Even if it is a knee-jerk reaction after another tragic helicopter crash, good idea AAIB.

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    Puma Gearbox Metal Shavings Conflict

    The gearbox is a center of controversy in the investigation of the accident where the Bond Super Puma crashed off Peterhead, killing 16 men including two crew: Capt Paul Burnham, 31, of Methlick, Aberdeenshire, and co-pilot Richard Menzies, 24, of Droitwich Spa, who worked for Bond Offshore Helicopters, KCA Deutag employees Brian Barkley, 30, of Aberdeen; Vernon Elrick, 41, of Aberdeen; Leslie Taylor, 41, of Kintore, Aberdeenshire; Nairn Ferrier, 40, of Dundee; Gareth Hughes, 53, of Angus; David Rae, 63, of Dumfries; Raymond Doyle, 57, of Cumbernauld; James John Edwards, 33, of Liverpool; Nolan Goble, 34, of Norwich, and Mihails Zuravskis, 39, of Latvia; and non employees James Costello, 24, of Aberdeen, who was contracted to Production Services Network (PSN); Alex Dallas, 62, of Aberdeen, who worked for Sparrows Offshore Services; Warren Mitchell, 38, of Oldmeldrum, Aberdeenshire, who worked for Weatherford UK; and Stuart Wood, 27, of Aberdeen, who worked for Expro North Sea Ltd.

    The inquiry blames the crash on gearbox failure, but for Bond and French company Eurocopter the question remains exactly where metal particles (evidence!) were found in the gearbox.

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    Unidentified Body Discovered


    Remains of some poor soul were discovered on the banks of the Dordogne River ten kilometers from where the helicopter crash killed Hong Kong tycoon Kok Lam. The body has not been identified yet. Due to its condition after being in the water, the id will have to be found through DNA testing. The remains of 12-year-old son Kok Shun-yu, son of Kok Lam, were found indie the Robinson R44 a day after the helicopter crashed.

    The body found in the river may be a person missing since April, which might explain the extent of the damage of the remains.

    Kok Lam was owner of the Hong Kong based Brilliant group, which runs upmarket hotels and other properties, including the newly purchased Château de la Riviere.

    Read more:

    Billionaire Lost in French Helicopter Crash

    Helicopter Lost in Dordogne river

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    Another Robinson Crash

    On January 12, 2013, a Sky Clear Aviação Robinson R22 Beta II was in Santa Maria Madalena, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on a training flight when it crashed into a forested area. Because he helicopter crashed on top of trees, some of the crash force was dispersed. Both the pilot and student sustain injury. Herbert Campbell, 39, and Gabriel Silva Mataruna Ahmed, 23, were the accident victims. They were conscious when the rescue team arrived but the helicopter is a total loss.

    Emergency responders were the fire brigade of Conceição de Macabu.

    The farm where the accident happened is on the edge of St. Mary Magdalene with Conceição de Macabu, North Fluminense. The Centre for research and prevention of Aeronautical Accidents is investigating.

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    Three Soldiers and Two Civilians Die in Colombian Helicopter Accident

    On JAN 9 2014, a Sociedad Aeronáutica de Santander (SASA) Bell 206L-3 LongRanger
    # HK-4462 en route from Puerto Berrío to Anori was north of Anori, Colombia when it suffered controlled flight into terrain, striking a mountain. No one aboard survived the impact. Three soldiers and two civilians died on the 9th when the helicopter went missing.

    The Seventh Division of the National Army had made a public statement that the aircraft, affiliated with the Aeronautical Society of Santander was “transporting a priest and military personnel assigned to the Fourteenth Brigade”.

    The helicopter crew failed to check in on Thursday afternoon and was located on Friday in rural Anori. Fatalities were two soldiers, one police, one military priest and the pilot.

    Director of the Department of Care andPrevention of Disasters César Hernández confirmed the fatalities.

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    Sikorsky Down off Norfolk, Va Beach


    A US Navy Sikorsky MH-53E Sea Dragon crashed off a Norfolk Virginia beach, killing one of five aboard. The helicopter was assigned to Helicopter Mine Countermeasures Squadron Fourteen.

    Three were injured and hospitalized at at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital. A rescue team is searching for one crewman who is still missing.

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    USAF Helicopter Crash in the UK

    The USAF Pavehawk Sikorsky HH-60G that crashed on January 7 2013 at about 19:00 GMT on a training flight in Marshland near Cley-Next-The-Sea, Norfolk in the UK during training exercises transporting munitions, killed the crew of four aboard. The helicopter impacted in a nature reserve.

    A second helicopter flew in as a rescue unit, but there were no survivors. Local witnesses heard and saw the helicopter flying low. It was initially believed the helicopter had ditched in the North Sea. No one on the ground was injured.

    The names of the victims have been released: Capt Christopher S. Stover, Capt Sean M. Ruane, Technical Sergeant Dale E. Mathews and Staff Sergeant Afton M. Ponce. The commander of their unit said that Captains Stover and Ruane were pilots, while Tech. Sgt. Mathews and SSgt Ponce were acting as special mission aviators and “The Liberty Wing feels as though it has lost members of its family, and we stand by to support one another and these airmen’s families during this difficult time.”

    An investigation is underway.

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    Billionaire Lost in French Helicopter Crash

    Chinese billionaire Lam Kok purchased a French vineyard, and boarded a helicopter with three others, including his son, the former owner who was flying the helicopter, and a translator, to take an aerial tour of the 65-hectare (160-acre) vineyards and surrounding grounds. Lam Kok’s and James Gregoire’s wives had declined to fly.

    Twenty minutes after the flight took off, the helicopter went missing.

    The helicopter, flown by James Gregoire, former owner of the vineyard, was missing but a witness came forward and told a mounted policeman that the helicopter had been seen falling into the Dordogne river, and people had been seen struggling in the water.

    Emergency helicopters, divers and a hundred foot officers converged on the scene, and were deployed to search. After dark, a helicopter with a searchlight joined the searchers.

    Lam Kok, new owner of the vineyard Château de la Riviere was head of the Hong Kong-based Brilliant group which plans to develop a tea and wine tasting center and hotel in Bordeaux.

    One of the bodies was recovered around midnight. Rumors are that the body is of Lam Kok’s twelve year old son. The search was halted overnight, but resumed on the morning of the twenty-first. The search has been hampered by strong currents in the river.

    Ironically, John Leprince, a former owner of the vineyard, died in a plane crash in 2002, not far from the crash site in the Dordogne. Combined with this crash, this means the last three owners of the vineyard were lost in aviation accidents.

    Read More…

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    Helicopter Lost in Dordogne river

    Four people are missing after a helicopter crashed into the Dordogne river.

    The helicopter fell into the waters of the Dordogne, by the commune of Lugon-and-l ‘ île-du-Carnay, bordering the River, where is located the castle of île-du-Carnay.

    Divers were searching the waters of the Dordogne while police swarmed the banks at the port of Petit Chartron. At midnight Friday, an unidentified corpse was recovered in the wreckage of the helicopter. The search for the other three missing was suspended at 11:30 and will resume Saturday morning at 8:00 a.m..

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    Eurocopter Fuel Gauge Safety Alert

    No one is saying that the recently discovered Eurocoptor problem with the low fuel level warning system had anything to do with Clutha ——leased police Eurocopter crashed thru the roof of the Clutha pub in Glasgow killing three crew members and seven people inside the pub——but it is out there on the table and one of those things that make you go hmmm. Connection or not, the Clutha accident is causing Eurocopter to take a closer look at their helicopters.

    The preliminary report on Clutha is not out yet, but there are reports that the helicopter did not run out of fuel.

    The Eurocopter fuel indicator problem is that the supply-tank fuel gauge can overestimate how much fuel is in the tank. Apparently the gauge can skip amber and go straight to red (low fuel.)

    Eurocopter is sending out safety notices about the issue..

    In the Clutha crash, the number of fatalities has risen to ten.

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    Sikorsky Crash off Bintulu Coast

    On December 12, 2013 at 7L45 a.m., a MHS Aviation Sikorsky S-76C #9M-STE had eight aboard when the flight encountered bad weather. They were flying to identify oil and gas exploration sites when weather forced them to ditch in the sea 159 kilometers off the coast of Bintulu.

    The helicopter was leased from MHS Aviation by Malaysian oil and gas company Petronas.

    The two pilots and six oil workers aboard were rescued by a passing ship. Apparently there were no fatalities, and no specific reports of injury. They were hospitalized in Miri.

    The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) is investigating.

    The Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) has not released whether or not the helicopter was recovered from the ocean.

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    Clutha Helicopter Crash


    The preliminary investigation of the Clutha helicopter crash revealed …

    • 95 liters left in the police helicopter
    • no evidence of engine failure
    • no evidence of gearbox failure
    • all significant components were present
    • all rotor grades were attached at the time of the crash
    • neither main blades nor tail blades were rotating

    Other than ruling out what is not the cause, investigators may be no closer to determining the reason the helicopter fell out of the air. The report says there was “no evidence of major mechanical disruption of either engine” of the Eurocopter EC135 as it returned from a police operation in Dalkeith, Midlothian, on the night of the crash.

    There were no flight recorders, but there is radar data and radio communications. The pilot had 5,500 hours, 646 in type.

    The wreckage is at AAIB’s headquarters, and the investigation continues.

    A fund has been opened for the victims. Donations can be made to the fund by calling 0141 287 7878 and paying by debit or credit card. Cash or cheques can be handed in to the council’s service desk at 45 John Street, Glasgow G1 1JE and bank payments can be made to Clutha Appeal Fund, sort code 83-44-00, account 10804129.

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    Glasgow Helicopter Crash Update

    The “Bond Air Services Ltd. for Police Scotland” Eurocopter EC135 T2+ registration #G-SPAO with three aboard crashed in the Clutha Pub, Stockwell Street, Glasgow. Three of the victims were aboard, six on the ground.

    Two witnesses Billy and Michael Byrne were inside the Clutha Vaults pub when the police helicopter crashed into it. The noise of the impact was indescribable, then…

    There was a sort of silence.The whole ceiling at the left hand side of the bar, where it had been, had collapsed in on itself and the gantry of the bar also collapsed. There was an initial bout of screaming. There was a huge ball of dust. I went and opened the doors. Whilst I was holding the door I could see my brother…

    Then, after finding each other, the two assisted where they could.

    I think that person was conscious. He was moaning so he was conscious. There was a second person under him and that person, to me, didn’t look conscious — he was face-down. When we got out I spent time with a chap who was injured. He had a head injury. We put him in an ambulance and hopefully he is fine. We were fine. We were just lucky.

    Others described the helicopter as tumbling at a strange angle, or that it dropped like a stone. Inside, the patrons of the bar heard a large bang before the lights went out. Others describe a whoosh, smoke, and eerie silence as the plane fell. The roof fell in, and dust floated in, choking everyone.

    First responders were passers by. Some survivors walked away. The numbers of the casualties were initially 6 deceased, 32 hospitalized. The victims totaled nine, at last release. Two officers and a civilian pilot were aboard. Search and rescue dogs assisted in the search and rescue operation. Air accident investigation investigators, Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, and rescue personnel were on the scene.

    The helicopter involved passed a safety check last year. The helicopter does not have a flight data recorder but some of the systems may have recoverable data.

    Victims Named

    • Robert Jenkins, 61
    • Mark O’Prey, 44
    • Colin Gibson, 33
    • John McGarrigle, 57
    • Samuel McGhee, 56
    • Gary Arthur, 48
    • helicopter pilot David Traill, 51
    • PC Kirsty Nelis, 36
    • PC Tony Collins, 43

    See News Videos Below

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    Robinson Emergency Landing in Russia

    A UTair Aviation Robinson R44 had two people aboard on November 22nd 2013 when it made a hard landing in Tyumen, Russia.

    This information comes even before a preliminary investigation, but reports are that there was an engine malfunction.

    Task Force Firehouse number 146 responded to the scene where it land at Tarakanova Yarkovsky village in Tyumen, Russia.

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    Honduras Crash in Rio Abajo


    A Bell 407 helicopter carrying Honduran political candidate Juan Hernandez to a rally in Juticalpa developed mechanical problems.

    The helicopter made noises indicating problems, fell, and lost its tail in Rio Abajo, Guaymaca. No injuries were reported of the six aboard: Hernandez, wife Ana Garcia, the president of Honduras, Rafael Leonardo Callejas, mayor of Tegucigalpa, Ricardo Alvarez and campaign coordinator, Oscar Alvarez.

    The helicopter crashed from low altitude. No cause has been determined for the accident. Hernandez continued on the campaign trail in another chopper.

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    Sikorsky Hits Gangnam High Rise


    On Nov 16, 2013, a helicopter took off from Soeul Gimpo Airport en route to Jamsil-Dong to pick up LG employees. The LG Electronics Sikorsky S-76C++ helicopter flew into a high rise in Seoul.

    Two pilots aboard the helicopter died after their propellor struck the 30 story high rise. No one in the building sustained injury.

    Captain Park In-kyu and co-pilot Koh Jong-jin, were employed by LG. The weather conditions at the were foggy, with limited visibility.

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    Rescue Helocopter Crashes during Maintenance Flight

    A Metro Aviation / Life Air Rescue Eurocopter EC-135P-1 was on a test flight with the pilot and two mechanic aboard when it crashed in a field behind Metro Aviation. All three aboard were injured, and hospitalized at Willis-Knighton Hospital.

    There was fuel on the ground, so emergency responders followed hazmat protocol. The accident was close to Shreveport Downtown Airport in a field at Hawn and North Thomas Avenue.

    The leased EC135 experienced mechanical problems and was in for maintenance..

    The affected helicopter has no history of problems, and has current certification. The cause of the incident has not yet been determined or released.

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    Mil Crash in Borneo

    An Indonesian Army Mil Mi-17B-5 en route to a construction site so remote it can only be reached by helicopter was flying from Tarakan to Malinau with a crew of construction workers and a 1,100 pound construction cargo when the helicopter developed engine trouble.

    Eight crew and eleven civilian construction workers went down in a jungle in Borneo, thirteen of whom died on impact.

    Four passengers and two crew survived. Eight of the fatalities were civilian construction workers, and five were military crew.

    The helicopter burned out on the ground near Bulan. The survivors suffered burns.

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    NZ Chopper crash

    On October 28,at 3;20 pm, a Mayday was declared when a Helicopter Line Aerospatiale AS 355 Ecureuil was landing and crashed into another of its own helicopters which had landed during a scenic tours.

    There were seven people aboard at the time of the landing. The pilot, his six passengers and five passengers from the helicopter that was struck were all injured.

    The pilot was landing near Tyndall Glacier in Mt Aspiring National Park.

    Twelve injured were taken to Queenstown airport, including the pilot, who was later transferred to Dunedin Hospital.

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    Bell Helicopter Crashes in Oregon


    Around noon on Oct 28, a Bell Jet Ranger helicopter carrying two Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife employees who were conducting fish counts (counting spawning nests, also called redds) crashed in the South Umpqua River near Days Creek. Both passengers and the pilot were conscious.

    Power lines were damaged, and the plane was leaking fuel. Three hundred twenty people lost electricity. The FAA and the NTSB will be on hand to check out the accident. A hazmat team handled the fuel leak.

    Two passengers, Holly Huchko, 34 and Eric Himmelreich, 35 were taken to Mercy Hospital in Roseburg, and the pilot to Sacred Heart at Riverbend. Huchko broke her back, Himmelreich broke a vertebra and the pilot, Fred Wittlake, broke an arm and some ribs.

    The Umpqua Fish District office counts fish to help determine fishing regulation.

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    Medical Evacuation Flight Crashes in Somerville

    A Hospital Wing Memphis Eurocopter AS 350B3 Astar en route from Memphis to Bolivar Tn crashed into a wooded area while en route to pick up a little girl at around 6:20 a.m.. No one aboard survived. The chopper went down near Fayette Academy just outside Somerville.

    Pilot Charles Smith, pediatric flight nurse Carrie Barlow and pediatric flight respiratory therapist Denise Adams died in the crash. The nurse and therapist worked with Le Bonheur.

    An NTSB investigator has been mobilized and is headed to the crash scene. The investigator will review the crash site, interview witnesses, review facts, atc and radar data, collect all information, and hold a news briefing this evening. The final report will take as much as 18 months.

    The staff of Le Bonheur is mourning the loss of their pedi flight team.

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    Sunrise Airlines Helicopters Crashes in Taiwan


    On Oct 16, 2013, a Sunrise Airlines Kawasaki BK helicopter with 3 aboard crashed on Jade Mountain, Taiwan.

    Two pilots and a passenger were aboard at the time of the crash. THe helicopter was porting supplies to the Central Weather Bureau’s observation station on Yushan.

    The crash victims were named: pilot Chang Kuo-kang, co-pilot Lin Yi-chi and bureau worker Chen Wen-chung. Chang had 3,181 hours of flying and Lin had 2,832 hours.

    The helicopter was planning on making 3 runs, delivering one person at a time to the weather station, but crashed on the second run at 8:05 a.m. Within an hour of missing the 2nd arrival, the wreckage had been located.

    The twenty-three year old Kawasaki BK helicopter had been checked thirteen days before the mission, and had passed its check.