The commission recommends that the helicopter manufacturer Sikorsky immediately ensures that expected altitude values when flying with autopilot are made known to all pilots, and that this is included in relevant manuals, the report states.
On Wednesday 28 February, a Sikorsky S-92 helicopter was involved in an accident west of Sotra outside Bergen.
61-year-old Reidun Hestetun died in the accident, and five other people were injured. The accident happened during a SAR exercise, i.e. a safety exercise.
– Don’t know yet
– We are happy that a technical error has been found which can help remove suspicion from the two pilots. But this does not mean that the final error has been found, says Jens Salt, head of flight safety at the Pilots’ Association Bergens Tidende.
– We have to wait for an answer as to whether the error had a direct impact on what happened that evening. We don’t know that yet, he points out.
Salt believes that the error that the Accident Investigation Board points out in its report is not an error that can be detected during normal maintenance, and therefore not something that the pilots could show about.
Got too steep an angle
The investigations carried out by the Accident Investigation Board show that the accident occurred when the crew was in the process of positioning the helicopter to pick up a training buoy.
During the approach towards the buoy, the speed decreased, and within a few seconds the helicopter’s nose should have risen from the expected 10-12 degrees to close to 30 degrees.
“When the flight crew became aware of the abnormal position, they tried to correct it, but the helicopter hit the sea and sank at a depth of 220 metres,” the report states.
Have sent a notice to all operators
Bristow Norway operated the helicopter. Managing director Sondre Nordseth says that they will carefully review the Accident Investigation Board’s report.
– We have assisted and will continue to assist the Accident Investigation Board in the ongoing investigation of the accident. It is important to emphasize that this is a preliminary report, and we do not have the opportunity to comment on ongoing investigations, says Norseth in a statement to Bergens Tidende.
Sikorsky Aircraft says it is continuing its cooperation with the Norwegian Accident Investigation Board in the investigation.
– We have sent a notice to all S-92 operators as suggested by the report, they say.
Important function
Sikorsky has pointed out during the investigation that when the MOT is activated – a function that prevents the helicopter’s angle from becoming too steep – the helicopter must not exceed 12-13 degrees nose position.
“This information is not specified in the Rotorcraft Flight Manual Supplement that describes SAR modes, but may assist S-92 helicopter crews in recognizing AFCS anomalous behavior,” the commission writes as a reason for recommending that Sikorsky update its manuals.
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2024-08-07 06:19:06
