2023-09-06 04:12:02
LONDON (AP) — Damage to a rear rotor was the cause of a helicopter crash that killed five people, including the president of English club Leicester, in 2018, according to an inquest the results of which were released Wednesday.
The Leonardo AW169 helicopter took off from center pitch following a Premier League game at Leicester’s King Power Stadium, and soared regarding 130 meters (430 feet). He then spun and fell onto a concrete platform outside the stadium.
Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, who owned the club, died in the accident along with team employees Nusura Suknamai and Kavenporn Punpare, as well as driver Eric Swaffer and the latter’s partner, Izabela Roza Lechowicz.
An inquiry by the British government’s Air Accidents Investigation Branch found that the helicopter’s control system failed because a part of the tail rotor broke, due to its ball bearings slipping rather than rolling, as result of built-up pressure.
The pilot’s pedals became disconnected from the tail rotor, the investigators found. This resulted in the aircraft turning violently to the right and being “impossible” to control.
The inquiry described this as a “catastrophic failure”, which caused the helicopter to spin rapidly around five times.
“I have no idea what’s going on,” Swaffer said in the recordings, as he lost control of the helicopter.
Asked if this was an accident that might have been prevented, Adrian Cope, the unit’s chief inspector for engineering, replied: “It was a process that built up on an ongoing basis. The damage in that bearing accumulated over time.”
Inspection of the bearing was mandatory only following 400 hours of use. The helicopter had flown 331 hours when the accident occurred.
The 209-page report ruled out that a drone or pilot error had played a role in the crash.
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