Helicopter

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    Panther Bell Crashes


    A Panther Bell Helicopter crashed en route from an oil rig. The Parent company of Panther Helicopters is John Wood Group PLC, based in Aberdeen, Scotland

    Three men and the pilot were en route to shore when they went down 30 miles NE of Venice, Louisiana.

    The pilot died in the crash, and two passengers sustained back injuries.

    The injured were taken to LSU Medical Center New Orleans. A Coast Guard Air Station New Orleans MH-65 helicopter and crew assisted in the rescue as well as supply vessel, “Ridge.”

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    Helicopter Pilot Dies during Fair

    Carl R Enlow was killed by a helicopter rotor at the Bloomsburg Pennsylvania town fair.

    Enlow was a former military helicopter pilot who was giving rides. He was struck after his shift, in an accident. He was med-evaced by LifeFlight helicopter to Geisinger Medical Center where he died.

    The Heritage Rotors LLC Enstrom F-28C helicopter was standing at the time of the accident, in the parking lot near gate five was in the process of gassing up between rides. Enlow was returning to the helicopter to speak to the next pilot when apparently his hat blew off and he reached for it.

    The Bloomsburg Fair Association is donating their profit from the rides to Enlow’s widow, and a memorial fund is being arranged.

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    First Responders Compromise Investigation

    The first responders to the Sunday crash in India’s Naneghat Hills compromised the investigation of a crash by moving the wreckage before investigators arrived. The United Helicharters flight from Juhu to Aurangabad to Nagpur crashed in the Naneghat Hills at an altitude of 2,000 feet.

    The bodies of the deceased and the flight data recorders were also removed before the DGCA arrived.

    Two pilots and three passengers died in the twin-engine Bell 212 crash during a foggy flight. The crash occurred on Sept 29, 2013 at 8:15 a.m..

    Protocol demands that except for rescue of survivors, the wreckage not be touched until the DGCA has arrived.

    Police and fire teams removed the bodies of captain Anshu Kumar Matta, captain Surendra Singh Bhadauria, co captain Allen Martin, technician Dean D’Souza and engineer Yatin Wakde, whose bodies were burned in the crash. The recovery team also failed to record the recovery process which is a violation of protocol, just as in the Mangalore crash.

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    Helicopter Crashes in Nepal


    An Air Dynasty Aérospatiale AS350B Ecureuil en route from Kathmandu to Tenzing-Hillary Airport was landing at Lukla, Nepal when the helicopter touched a fence and crashed on September 26, 2013.

    The four aboard the helicopter sustained injury.

    Captain Arun Malla, Anita Sherpa, Dagel Sherpa and Sonam Chhiring Sherpa were aboard during the crash. The injured were airlifted and hospitalized at Pasang Lhamu – Nicole Nicky Hospital in Lukla.

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    Semi Hits Chopper

    An unmanned CEMIG Helibras HB-350B Esquilo (Eurocopter Ecureuil) in Celso Buelo Brazil was parked with its pilot nearby when the helicopter was struck by an articulated semi that was rolling on its own. The truck driver had forgotten to apply the brakes.

    The helicopter sustained damage in the horizontal stabilizer and tail cone.

    Both the helicopter and the semi had been parked, and neither had a driver aboard at the time of the collision.

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    Navy Helicopter Crashes in Red Sea

    A United States Navy Sikorsky MH-60S Sea Hawk assigned to Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 6 crashed in the Red Sea on Sunday. Three of the five aboard are recuperating. Two are missing and presumed dead. The crew is from Naval Air Station North Island. (San Diego)

    The USS Nimitz Carrier Strike Group is supporting the rescue efforts. The crash is reported as an attempted landing on the deck.

    The names of the two lost at sea have not been released. All of the crew wore floatation devices and safety gear-

    See News Video Below

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    Medical Evacuation Helicopter has Hard Landing in Mississippi

    A medical Eurocopter AS350 helicopter from Pioneer Hospital carrying a patient to Baptist Hospital in Jackson made a hard landing in the back yard of Don Forbush–an open field on Ratliff Ferry Road, Madison County around 9:30 pm on Sept 19. The helicopter sustained damage.

    Rescue and law enforcement responded to the scene. The pilot was injured, and transported by UMC’s helicopter to the hospital. The patient he was flying was taken by another MedStat helicopter to University of Mississippi Medical Center.

    The MedStat pilot who made the hard landing was commended for saving the lives of everyone aboard.

    The incident is under investigation by the NTSB and the FAA.

    Video Below

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    Logging Helicopter Crash Kills Pilot


    Pilot William Bart Colantuono of Indialantic, Florida, was working for R&R Conner Aviation of Darby, Montana when his helicopter crashed while he was lifting logs in Oregon. Colantuono released the logs before crashing.

    Witnesses saw a rotor separate before the helicopter flipped and crashed upside down. Colantuono, originally a navy pilot, had been flying privately for 25 years, and authored a book on “hell-logging.”

    The accident occurred on Sept 17, 2013.

    The official preliminary report said “16-SEP-13/N204UH BELL UH-1B ROTORCRAFT CRASHED UNDER UNKNOWN CIRCUMSTANCES DURING A LOGGING OPERATION, THE 1 PERSON ON BOARD WAS FATALLY INJURED, NEAR DETROIT, OREGON”

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    Little Bird


    A development like the Boeing helicopter that can make autonomous takeoffs and landings is one that brings with it a whole set of questions.

    The “little bird” which is the first full-size helicopter to take off and land on its own was developed by Boeing, Carnegie Mellon University and Piasecki Aircraft.

    One wonders for example, if the software/hardware is transferable to other helicopters, and if this would increase or decrease the safety of those aboard.

    I am looking forward to hearing more about the progress of this helicopter.

    According to Boeing, the Unmanned Little Bird Demonstrator is a modified MD 530F single-turbine helicopter designed for optionally manned flight, a platform capable of dual pilot, single pilot or no pilot flight operations. It can be remotely operated or programmed for autonomous operation in any mode. The unmanned variant is only being marketed internationally.

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    Missing Helicopter Found, Confirmed Death of Margarita Afanaskin


    On Sept 14, 2013, an Agusta Westland AW119 Koala en route from Chinggis Khaan International Airport in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia to Myakinino in Krasnogorsk, Moscow went missing near Tver Oblast. The last conversation between the pilot and ATC took place at 13:14 when the plane was flying over Staritskogo in heavy rain with low visibility. There are conflicting reports that the helicopter landed at a lumberjack festival with a number of people aboard, and that the commander of the aircraft was 30-year-old helicopter champion of Europe and Russia, Margarita Afanaskin was flying the helicopter to a Yakhroma airfield when the helicopter went missing. This has not been confirmed.

    The search team involved more than 100 people from diverse agencies, including the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry: 25 people 5 units from the Federal Air Transport Agency; 6 people, 3 units and participating police officers, foresters, volunteers. The rescue hotline released at the time was (4822) 39-99-99.?. Four Robinson helicopters and a Mi-8 helicopter searched Saturday.

    The search continued through the end of the fourteenth, and resumed the morning of the fifteenth.

    At 18:11 on September 16, the Ministry of Internal Affairs reported that helicopters in the area of ??the village Selco Staritskogo district of Tver region, from the air sighted the possible wreckage of the vehicle. Ground forces confirmed the bodies of a man and a woman whose names were not initially released; but since then the pilot was confirmed, and the passenger of the helicopter was the head of a department of the Federal Forestry Agency, Sergei Medvedev.

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    Three Die in Canadian Coast Guard Helicopter Crash

    CCGS_Amundsen_in_the_Arctic
    Three people died in a Canadian Coast Guard crash of a *MBB Bo 105 helicopter.

    The accident occurred in the McClure Strait near Banks Island in the Northwest Territories. THe helicopter was out of CCGS Amundsen, a T1200 Class Medium Arctic icebreaker and Arctic research vessel operated by the Canadian Coast Guard which performs ice breaking in winter, research in summer and is equipped for search and rescue, and pollution management.

    The helicopter crew was on a reconnaissance mission to check ice conditions.

    The names of the fatalities were released:

    • Daniel Dube, the pilot;
    • Marc Thibault, commanding officer of the CCGS Amundsen;
    • Klaus Hochheim, an Arctic researcher, a respected climatologist and research associate with the Centre for Earth Observation Science (CEOS) at the University of Manitoba.

    Their bodies were recovered.

    The cause of the accident has not been determined, though it is presumed the Arctic being “one of the harshest and most challenging climates in the world” may be a factor, though failure of helicopter components has not been ruled out.

    * Messerschmitt

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    Russian Helicopter Crash Kills 3


    On Sept 9, a DOSAAF-operated Mil Mi-2 helicopter en route from Starorusskoye to Poronaysk Russia crashed with three aboard on Sakhalin Island. There were no survivors. The helicopter, registration HS-TEF, is a total loss.

    The crew was monitoring rivers when it crashed about 30 kilometers from Dolinsk.

    Emergency services responded, including the Dolinskogo fire squad, the Russian Emergency Management Services group and an Antonov An-2 aircraft out of Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk airport. THe fire was extinguished at 1:45 pm.

    The cause of the accident is under investigation and no conclusions have been drawn. Visibility and weather conditions at the time were good according to the Center for Crisis Management of the Main Directorate of the Russian Emergencies Ministry.

    DOSAAF is an acronym for the Russian Volunteer Society for Cooperation with the Army, Aviation, and Fleet.

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    Discovery Channel Helicopter Crash lawsuit

    Three people killed during a Discovery Channel Reality Show filming probably died due to cost cutting measures by the Discovery Channel.

    The “Crossbow Helicopters” Bell 206B Jet Ranger helicopter #N59518 was being used to shoot a reality show on the Polsa Rosa Ranch near Acton, California when it crashed at about 3:40 am. It broke into three pieces on impact in a rugged canyon area near Soledad Canyon Road.

    Cast member Michael Donatelli, cameraman Darren Rydstrom and pilot David Gibbs died when the helicopter they were in crashed at the Polsa Rosa Ranch. The case alleges “conscious disregard of additional, unacceptable safety risk” and claims that the pilot and the various chopper companies were unfit to operate the Helicopter.

    Grisel Donatelli, Amanda Donatelli and Dominic Donatelli named Discovery Communications, producers Eyeworks USA, Bongo Inc, Van Nuys Copters, Crossbow Helicopters and Orbic Air and others were named in the 23-page three count complaint.

    Pilot Gibbs had a spotty safety record. His license had been suspended by the FAA several times.

    Document

    Video

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    New Mexico Helicopter Crash


    A Robinson R44 II with three aboard crashed near Truth or Consequences, New Mexico just before noon in Sierra County near State Road 187 between Las Palomas and Caballo.

    There was no fire, but the three people aboard died in the crash. The victims were 78-year-old Duane Zietlow, of Elephant Butte; 61-year-old William Brownfield, of Caballo; and 34-year-old pilot Ebenezer Priebe, of Tucson, Arizona.

    The helicopter may have struck a power line.

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    Helicopter News

    Just crossing the transom now, there were alerts today of a number of helicopter events:

    • The fleet of North Sea Super Pumas were reinstated after the Sumburgh crash that killed 4 oil workers:
      but the L2 version of the helicopter – the Super Puma model involved in Friday’s crash – will only be allowed to fly on the what has been described as “non passenger revenue operations”

    • 1 hurt in helicopter crash in Tonto National Forest when a helicopter leased by APS made a hard landing with six people aboard

    See Video below

    • Helicopter crashes for science at NASA Langley

    See Video below

    • The Canadian NTSB indicated that the Robinson Helicopter R44 II in July 2012 in Carcross, Yukon occurred because of the pilot’s failure to check winds affecting the landing area. On July 10, 2012, an R44 II operated by Horizon Helicopters Ltd. transported 2 Yukon Government surveyors to bear-bait sites in the Carcross area. The helicopter departed Carcross at 3 p.m. followed the north shore of Tagish Lake and approached the wildlife survey site from the west. At approximately 3:13 p.m., the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre received an emergency locator transmitter signal from the aircraft. The wreckage was found approximately 5 nautical miles east of Carcross on Nares Mountain. The pilot was fatally injured, one passenger was seriously injured, and another received minor injuries.
  • On Oahu, a civilian pilot and a passenger crashed in a pineapple field a mile south of Wheeler Army Airfield. Both were hospitalized. The privately owned AC 8KCAB Decathlon experienced a loss of power. The accident was originally listed as occurring in a helicopter, but it is a single engine fixed wing plane registered to J3 ENGINEERING.
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    Robinson Crashes in Sweden

    In August 26, 2013, a Robinson R44 in Tyresö-Flatenm Sweden was fetching water from a lake when the helicopter crashed.

    Two people were aboard as the helicopter came in at a low altitude. There was a big bang heard by witnesses on the ground.

    A junior high school class of fourteen and fifteen year-olds witnessed when the helicopter fell into lake Tyreso Flaten in Tyreso east. They paddled out to assist the people aboard the helicopter. When police, sea and air rescue and fire personnel responded to the scene, the two victims had already been rescued.

    The investigation is still underway.

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    Eurocopter Ditches, with Four Fatalities


    A CHC operated Eurocopter AS 332L2 Super Puma Mk2 with 18 aboard had taken off from the Borgsten Dolphin rig en route to Sumburgh Airport and suffered a “catastrophic loss of power” before it ditched 2 nm W off Sumburgh, Shetland Islands, Scotland.

    Fourteen survivors were recovered. Four fatalities were reported: Duncan Munro, 46, from Bishop Auckland, Sarah Darnley, 45, from Elgin, Gary McCrossan, 59, from Inverness, and George Allison, 57, from Winchester. Three of the four bodies have been recovered.

    The survivors were hospitalized at Gilbert Bain Hospital in Lerwick. Nine were detained at the hospital for exposure.

    Rescue services included a ferry, a cargo ship, lifeboat crews from Lerwick and Aith, coastguard helicopters, RAF Lossiemouth and two Bond rescue helicopters.

    CHC works for Total transporting rig workers.

    The cause of the crash has not been determined. Pumas have been grounded due to safety concerns.

    Videos Below

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    Christopherus 8 Crash

    An emergency Christopherus 8 helicopter made a forced landing when a rotor blade struck rock. THe pilots made an emergency landing in Montafon, Vorarlberg, Austria

    The pilot told authorities wind shear caused a control issue and interfered with landing.

    There were no injuries. A replacement helicopter was provided.

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    Helicopter Emergency Landing in India

    On August 14, 2013, a Tej Airways Robinson R44 Raven II en route from Godhra to Amdavad ashram had to make an emergency landing at Chartoda graveyard in Gomtipu, near Ahmedabad, India.

    The helicopter had been chartered for Narayan Prem Sai by his father, Hindu Spiritual leader Asaram Babu.

    Four firetrucks and three ambulances responded to the scene.

    Two people were hospitalized.

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    Martin County Texas Helicopter Fatalities

    A Haverfield Aviation Hughes 369 outside of Midland Texas was engaged in a routine power line inspection at ten a.m. when the helicopter encountered problems.

    Haverfield Aviation performs Aerial Power Line Inspection And Maintenance.

    The helicopter flew into powerlines.

    The pilot survived. Two linemen suspended from the helicopter by cables fell two hundred feet when the cables snapped.

    The helicopter made a safe landing.

    OSHA and the FAA are investigating.

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    Mir Aero Eurocopter Crashes in Romania, 5 of 6 are Fatalities

    On July 29. 2013, a Mir Aero Eurocopter EC 130 (AS 350 B4) with 6 aboard was en route.

    It crashed in Taureni Lake, Mures County, Romania. Four bodies were found initially; the fifth, Sorin Terbea was found by divers. Sorin Terbea is a wealthy businessman. The woman, Terbea’s company’s marketing director who was engaged to Terbea was rescued by witnesses at the lake. She is reported to be the only survivor. Two German citizens and their child were also aboard.

    The Romanian Police forensic team was sent to Mures to coordinate investigation launched after the tragedy.

    Video Below

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    5 Fatalities in Noxen, PA Helicopter Crash During Thunderstorm

    A Robinson R66 #N646AG en route from Lehighton PA to Endecott NY with five aboard was en route when it disappeared from radar during conditions of severe thunderstorms and heavy fog. The last communication to ATC was a report around 10 pm Saturday that he was “losing altitude and would try to return to a nearby airfield.”

    The fragmented wreckage was located at 1:50 p.m. in a heavily wooded area. There was no fire, and no witness.

    Emergency response vehicles and personnel traveled an access road on the Mehoopany Wind Farm, a BP Wind Energy location, to the top of South Mountain. The unofficial guess at the cause of the crash is that the helicopter was caught in a thunderstorm.

    Flight Manifest:
    58-year-old Bernard Michael Kelly, of Ellicott City, Md.;
    daughter, Leanna Mee Kelly, of Savage, Md.;
    29-year-old Carl Robert Woodland, of Lovettsville, Va.;
    3-year-old son, Noah Robert McKain Woodland, of Leesburg, Va.;
    pilot 30-year-old David Ernest Jenny Jr., of Towson, Md.

    * N646AG ROBINSON R66 ROTORCRAFT CRASHED INTO A WOODED RUGGED TERRAIN, THE 5 PERSONS ON BOARD WERE FATALLY INJURED, 8 MILES FROM SKYHAVEN AIRPORT, TUNKHANNOCK, PA

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    Thompson Falls Crash Under Investigation

    A helicopter that went down in the Prospect Creek drainage outside of Thompson Falls ten miles up Prospect Creek road on July 27, 2013, suffered one fatality and two injured who were transported to the hospital.

    Two Bear Air 2 assisted in finding the downed helicopter.

    Search and Rescue, Forest Service and fire personnel responded to the scene. An air evacuation helicopter call was cancelled.

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    Helicopter Chops Passengers on Fishing Expedition


    On July 21, 2013, a Eurocopter crashed in Murmansk in the Kola Peninsula.

    Two British tourists who were traveling for a salmon fishing trip on the River Rynda and a Russian translator had just exited the helicopter. It was lifting off when it crash landed, striking them by the rotors when the helicopter attempted to lift off and tilted on its side, 150 kilometers from Murmansk to the tourist camp on the river Rynda.

    Four people were injured but only the pilot has survived.

    The Britons, Diamond Rupert and Mark Robinson were born in 1944, and the translator Alexander Tushnikov was born in 1960.

    Emergency services flew in from the Emergencies Ministry.

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    Fatal Helicopter Crash

    On July 16, 2013, a Bell UH-1H Iroquois #N775AR flying for Kinder Morgan piloted by A.J. Blain was on a seismic testing mission when it crashed in Delores county in rolling hill country.

    The helicopter coordinates with a ground crew to position seismic sensors looking for oil and gas deposits

    The Bell UH-1H Iroquois belonged to Billings Flying Service.

    The pilot died in the crash, and debris hit and injured a person on the ground. There was no fire, but the helicopter is a total loss.

    The crash is under investigation by the Dolores County Sheriff’s office, the BLM, the FAA and the NTSB.

    The preliminary data states that during a lift operation, N775AR BELL UH-1H ROTORCRAFT went on its side and crashed. The one person on board was fatally injured near Dove Creek Colorado.