What: Mil Mi-8
Where: Badondo north of Brazzaville, Congo
When: Nov 15, 2011
Who: 4 aboard, 1 fatality
Why: The military chopper which had been chartered by a mining company crashed during bad weather when it tried to land.
The pilot, Alexandre Kossiarev, was from Belarus and died in the crash.
Three passengers were injured.
What: Rostov ROSTO
Where: 20 km from Naryn-Khuduk, Kalmykia Russia
When: Feb 6 2011
Who: 2 aboard, 2 fatalities
Why: At around 14:00, the crew made an emergency landing because of engine trouble and then fixed it. The helicopter was engaged in shooting wolves in the Chernozemelskiy region of Kalmykia. Shortly after liftoff, the Mi-2 helicopter crashed Saturday, killing both crew members (pilot and mechanic). The helicopter—reportedly belonging to either the “Russian Defense Sports and Technical Organization” or “Aero Club”—apparently could not keep aloft.
In the wake of recent Germanwings crash, Lufthansa is considering introducing unannounced drug tests for pilots.
In a recent interview with Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr said such random drug tests will help improve flight safety.
It is believed that the airline will submit a proposal for unannounced drug tests to the German taskforce that was set up after flight 9525 crashed in French Alps on March 24.
A Verhalen Flyers LLC Mooney M20E Super 21 en route from Angel Fire Airport with a family aboard was taking off in windy conditions when it crashed two hundred feet from the runway.
The cause of the crash is unknown but officials point out the windy conditions which are visible in the video below.
The four passengers—two adults and two children— a San Antonio family aboard were fatalities.
What: DAVCRON PTY LTD Bell 206
Where: South Turramurra, Sydney Australia
When: July 22, 2011
Who: 2 fatalities
Why: While on a routine flight from Rosehill to the owner’s hanger in Wyee, the bell chopper crashed north of Sydney while flying in a heavy downpour. The wreckage was spread in a hundred meter area at the foot of a cliff in Lane Cove National Park. The pilot and passenger were confirmed dead. Emergency services could only reach by rappelling down. Recovery has been postponed till the weekend because of continued bad weather.
Witnesses say they may have seen something fly off the back of the helicopter and one witness said the helicopter was upside down when it fell. Descriptions of the troubled helicopter included “clattering” and “explosion.”
Initially the victims of the crash were not known, but their names have been released. The bodies of pilot Colin Greenwood, 35 and 85 year old Businessman Bruce Campbell were found in the wreckage.
Officials say the pilot had filed a flight plan although it was not required.
Campbell founded Davcron Engineering Pty Ltd and owned the chopper which regularly on Fridays flew him to his semi-rural home. Campbell has three sons and is a grandfather of five.
What: Mostardas Aviacao Agrícola Embraer EMB-201 Ipanema while cropdusting
Where: Bacopari Brazil on the coast of Rio Grande do Sul
When: Jan 17, 2011
Who: 1 fatality
Why: A cropduster (PT-GHP) crashed in Bacopari Brazil Monday afternoon at 2:30 pm. The pilot was flying over a farm near the district of Solitude and spraying a rice crop at the time of the incident. V Serviço Regional de Investigação e Prevenção de Acidentes Aeronáuticos is investigating,
Follow this link to a knowledgeable article question/answer session by Tim Robinson from Aerospace International regarding the Sao Paulo plane crash
Or see the crash timeline.