What: Bond Offshore Helicopters Ltd. Eurocopter EC225LP Super Puma Mk2+
Where: 24 nautical miles off the coast of Aberdeen, North Sea
When: May 10, 2012
Who: 16 passengers, 0 fatalities
Why: The Bond helicopter was en route from Aberdeen Airport to the Maersk Resilient drilling rig when an emergency developed.

Pilots had to make a controlled descent into the North Sea when the gearbox oil pressure tanked. With the use of flotation equipment, the ditched helicopter stayed afloat.

The two crew and twelve passengers were safely recovered by afternoon. A cautionary measure suspending Eurocopter EC225 flights has been issued pending investigation. Examination revealed that the helicopter suffered a crack to the gearbox shaft.

The passengers were employed by Halliburton, Ensco, Brundt and Stag, and Conoco. The Jasmine field is operated by Conoco Phillips.

The rescue was coordinated by the Aberdeen coastguard, who was alerted at 12.15pm, and RNLI lifeboats. The initial call indicated that added that all everyone was on the raft. Nine were flown to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, and five were taken by life boat.

The choice to suspend the EC225 model until the kinks are worked out is a smart move. Better monitoring of potential cracks to the gearbox shaft may eliminate more “catastrophic failures” like the one that Eurocopter that crashed in 2009. In that event, the operator had put off replacing the main rotor gearbox, resulting in the death of 14 offshoremen and two helicopter crew.

The skill and training of the (May 10, 2012) 100% successful pilots and rescue crew cannot be commended highly enough. Sure, the media is calling this a textbook rescue, but somehow that description feels inadequate to me, leaving out the heroic human element involved. These guys are heroes.

The post North Sea Rescuers Exemplary Performance first appeared on George Hatcher's Air Flight Disaster.

What: EC225 Super Puma chopper en route to a drilling rig, the Global Santa Fe
Where: in the North Sea, 500 yards from the BP ETAP platform.
When: Wednesday February 18, 2009 6.40 pm
Who: 16 passengers and 2 pilots
Why: 125 miles east of Aberdeen, the helicopter was forced to ditch in conditions of poor visibility. Flotation bags kept the helicopter afloat. Passengers waited on two rubber rafts. Individuals on the platform called the coast guard. Rescue vehicles included a Nimrod from RAF Kinloss, a Coastguard copter and a Sea King from RAF Lossiemouth. Emergency homing beacons fitted to the rafts and the men’s survival suits assisted the rescue as conditions made them nearly invisible.

Three were winched to a helicopter; 15 were rescued by lifeboat, taken to the platform and flown to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary. A triumph of rescue. No fatalities.

The post Surviving a Helicopter Crash in the North Sea in Feb first appeared on George Hatcher's Air Flight Disaster.