Helicopter Crashed In Norway, 13 Persons On Board

flyingturtle · Fri Apr 29, 2016 12:07 pm

I was just reading klartale.no (I'm learning Norwegian...), and this was on the front page:

http://www.klartale.no/norge/helikop...soner-om-bord-har-styrtet-1.718758

No signs of survivors

Witnesses have seen the helicopter shedding parts before crashing

It was under way to the Gullfaks B oil field

David

voodoo · Fri Apr 29, 2016 12:18 pm

'CHC Helikopter Service' in article
No word on type yet...

Someone83 · Fri Apr 29, 2016 12:20 pm

Quoting voodoo (Reply 1):
No word on the type yet...

It was an EC225

kelvin933 · Fri Apr 29, 2016 12:22 pm

The helicopter was an Eurocopter EC225 operated by CHC Helicopter Service with 11 passengers and 2 pilots on board.
Reports indicate that the rotor disintegrated in flight.

http://www.nrk.no/nyheter/helikopterstyrt-i-hordaland-1.12923950

[Edited 2016-04-29 05:23:47]

[Edited 2016-04-29 05:24:12]

breiz · Fri Apr 29, 2016 12:34 pm

The helicopter which took off from Bergen, crashed on land, on a small island, Turøy, before flying over the sea.

SASDC8 · Fri Apr 29, 2016 12:42 pm

Quoting breiz (Reply 4):
The helicopter which took off from Bergen, crashed on land, on a small island, Turøy, before flying over the sea.

Actually the helicopter was returing to Bergen BGO after a flight out to the platform Gullfaks B. It was only 30 km from BGO when it crashed.

breiz · Fri Apr 29, 2016 12:44 pm

Quoting SASDC8 (Reply 5):
Actually the helicopter was returing to Bergen BGO after a flight out to the platform Gullfaks B. It was only 30 km from BGO when it crashed.

Thanks for the clarification, I was reading too fast .

Captaindoony · Fri Apr 29, 2016 1:01 pm

Initial reports make it sound awfully similar to the main rotor gearbox failure and resulting separation of the main rotor from the airframe that occured in the April 2009 crash of Bond Flight 85N heading from the Miller Oilfield to ABZ. That was an AS332L2 however safety recommendations after the crash affected both the AS332 & EC225's.

[Edited 2016-04-29 06:02:20]

SteinarN · Fri Apr 29, 2016 1:30 pm

Report from eyewitnesses says strange sound from helicopter followed by a short period of unstable flight before the (main)rotor separated completely from the rest of the helicopter and the helicopter then plunged rapidly to the ground. Main rotor found a short distance from the rest of the wreck. Main rotor on land and the rest of the wreck near land in shallow water.

[Edited 2016-04-29 06:37:21]

[Edited 2016-04-29 06:56:15]

Aesma · Fri Apr 29, 2016 1:55 pm

The last couple of accidents due to the gearbox were precautionary controlled ditchings. Linked to a faulty warning and not a real problem. I wonder if they had a warning this time.

readytotaxi · Fri Apr 29, 2016 3:11 pm

BBC have video of crash site.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-36169929

Eleven of those on board were Norwegian, one was British and one Italian.
RIP

hiflyeras · Fri Apr 29, 2016 3:55 pm

Have a cousin that works on a Statoil platform off of Bergen...hoping he's okay. Very tragic for all affected.

larshjort · Fri Apr 29, 2016 4:37 pm

It is very sobering to see a pictures of the main rotor head complete with a rotorblades lying on the ground. Hopefully the investigators will find out what the issue is. RIP to my colleagues and to the pilots. The EC225 is being grounded by the norwegian CAA and several customers around the word is also halting flying with the EC225

AirPacific747 · Fri Apr 29, 2016 4:40 pm

I used to do some observation flights around that oil rig some years ago to keep my skills current. I believe this is the Gullfax B platform.

SteinarN · Fri Apr 29, 2016 4:43 pm

A video of the rotor as it rotates and falls to the ground.

http://www.tv2.no/nyheter/8269925/

bennett123 · Fri Apr 29, 2016 4:54 pm

www.aviation-safety.net gives the reg as LN-OJF.

Thunderboltdrgn · Fri Apr 29, 2016 5:17 pm

About the grounding
http://www.luftfartstilsynet.no/inco...20-%20Limitation%20of%20operations
http://www.luftfartstilsynet.no/aktuelt/Flygeforbud_for_EC225LP

flybynight · Fri Apr 29, 2016 5:40 pm

That video is pretty jaw dropping, watching the rotor flying through the air almost like a kids toy. Sad day for my country as well as Italy and England.

RIP

Mortyman · Fri Apr 29, 2016 5:53 pm

Quoting SteinarN (Reply 14):
A video of the rotor as it rotates and falls to the ground.

http://www.tv2.no/nyheter/8269925/

Have they deleted the video ? Can't seem to find it ...

Aesma · Fri Apr 29, 2016 5:58 pm

From several sources, maintenance (what kind ? something significant obviously or you wouldn't need to defer it) was deffered two times on the bird, 100 hours flight time extension each time.

Mortyman · Fri Apr 29, 2016 6:09 pm

*** The two black boxes has been located ***

http://www.nrk.no/hordaland/har-funnet-de-svarte-boksene-1.12924908

Apparently the Canadian compnay that owns the helicopter is in financial trouble:

CHC Fights the Clock to Avoid Bankruptcy After Missed Payment

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articl...id-bankruptcy-after-missed-payment

mila · Fri Apr 29, 2016 6:41 pm

It looks like a accident for a few years ago caused by the gearbox to break, and at that time the supervising computer detected a problem a few minutes before the crash.

Small metal fragments was detected but sadly to late to avoid the crash, partly due to some magnets in the gearbox that prevented the supervising logic from seeing them.

SteinarN · Fri Apr 29, 2016 6:47 pm

Quoting Mortyman (Reply 18):
Quoting SteinarN (Reply 14):
A video of the rotor as it rotates and falls to the ground.

http://www.tv2.no/nyheter/8269925/

Have they deleted the video ? Can't seem to find it ...

It works here.

Mortyman · Fri Apr 29, 2016 6:52 pm

Quoting SteinarN (Reply 22):
It works here.

Yes, it works for me too now ...

ceo@afg · Fri Apr 29, 2016 9:36 pm

Now on youtube

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LjBh3PF6-Xk

AirlineCritic · Sat Apr 30, 2016 6:39 am

Quoting SteinarN (Reply 14):
A video of the rotor as it rotates and falls to the ground.

That is the craziest thing I have seen in a while.

Disturbing. It will be important and interesting to find out what really happened here. I have some memories of the Copterline crash of the scheduled hell service between Tallinn and Helsinki some years back; flew that route myself once. Some kind of a catastrophic failure. There seems be a fair number of helicopter accidents where something happens that prevents the usual engineless emergency landing.

I'm sorry for the loss of life. My condolences to the families.

Oykie · Sat Apr 30, 2016 9:08 am

Quoting flybynight (Reply 17):

That video is pretty jaw dropping, watching the rotor flying through the air almost like a kids toy. Sad day for my country as well as Italy and England.

Quoting AirlineCritic (Reply 25):
That is the craziest thing I have seen in a while.

This is really sad news. I know people who commute our to these platforms and pilots who fly these helicopters. To see that rotor circling above the burning chash is heartbreaking. Thinking about those who have lost their loved ones yesterday.

bjorn14 · Sat Apr 30, 2016 9:28 am

I heard on the news that this helo has had 5 incidents since 2009.

Oykie · Sat Apr 30, 2016 10:51 am

They have lifted the wreck out of the water now. Hard to imagine that yesterday this was a helicopter with 13 persons onboard

Picture taken from http://www.aftenposten.no/nyheter/ir...daland---direkteblogg-8450661.html

Mortyman · Sat Apr 30, 2016 11:55 am

Apparently it crashed to the ground at 300 Km.phr

flyingturtle · Sat Apr 30, 2016 12:33 pm

The rotor still flying is eerie. Now I've seen the footage.

The accident somehow reminds me of a accident where a helicopter touched a rock while offloading passengers. The blade tips suffered little damage, but the vibrations basically took the helicopter apart. A sober reminder that copters and plans are different beasts.

David

nighthawk · Sat Apr 30, 2016 4:34 pm

Quoting flybynight (Reply 17):
That video is pretty jaw dropping, watching the rotor flying through the air almost like a kids toy. Sad day for my country as well as Italy and England.

Can you please get the name of our country right. It is The United Kingdom, or Great Britain/Britain for short. The gentleman who has lost his life was also from Aberdeenshire, SCOTLAND. This has nothing to do with England.

Aquila3 · Sun May 01, 2016 9:35 am

Our local newspaper "La Prealpina" reports now that the Italian victim of the accident was one of the two pilots, Michele Vimercati, 44, born and grown up in Legnano, Milan.
According to the news he was a very experienced pilot that got his training in the Italian Army and served during the Iraqi war.
My thoughts to the family and all those involved in this tragedy.
May his soul fly high.
RIP

prebennorholm · Mon May 02, 2016 1:17 am

Danish financial news agency Børsen reports that in addition to Norwegian and British civil aviation authorities Airbus has also grounded the EC-225LP Super Puma helicopter.

Following a few gearbox related incidents it was also grounded in 2012 - 2013, and only reintroduced after extensive modification and recertification by EASA.

If they don't find this accident to be caused by a one off manufacturing fault, then it can be a long time before the EC-225 flies again.

The EC-225 is a major workhorse for the operator CHC Helicopter Service. They were already in deep financial trouble before the accident, having been unable pay interests on loans. 9½% p.a. bonds maturing in 2020 have recently been traded below 50.

Seems like now miracles are needed for survival.

Mortyman · Mon May 02, 2016 4:53 am

Airbus personell is shocked by the fact the main rotor came loose. It has never happened this way before.

http://www.dn.no/nyheter/politikkSam...-sjokkert-over-at-hovedrotor-lsnet

Thunderboltdrgn · Mon May 02, 2016 8:26 am

The Norwegian accident investigation board article. Investigation group also have representatives
from French BEA and British AAIB:

http://www.aibn.no/About-us/Nyhetsar...copter-Accident-The-work-continues

flyingturtle · Mon May 02, 2016 10:27 am

I googled around for accidents where the main rotor detached. I only found accidents in Robinson helicopters, which were related to corrosion. I'm not sure though if I understand the reports right - if the "main rotor" detached, or if the "main rotor drive" detached.

This is an unbelievable accident at any rate.

David

breiz · Tue May 03, 2016 2:36 pm

Quoting flyingturtle (Reply 36):
I googled around for accidents where the main rotor detached. I only found accidents in Robinson helicopters

Not quite so unfortunately.
A Bond AS332 L2 (G-REDL) flying from the Miller platform to Aberdeen (Scotland) in 2009, saw her full rotor part away and crashed.
The 16 people on-board died.
A crack in the gear-box (metal fatigue) was found as the explanation.

https://www.gov.uk/aaib-reports/2-2011-aerospatiale-eurocopter-as332-l2-super-puma-g-redl-1-april-2009

flyingturtle · Tue May 03, 2016 3:32 pm

Quoting breiz (Reply 37):

Thanks for finding the report, I'll read it in the next few days!

I wonder what structure ultimately holds the main rotor in place - so it should not depart from the rest of the copter. One would think that this structure is quite bomb-proof, so that the gearbox and the engines can seize up, burn, explode and whatever, and the crucial main rotor remains in place.

David

breiz · Wed May 04, 2016 12:51 pm

Quoting flyingturtle (Reply 38):
so that the gearbox and the engines can seize up

I assume that the gearbox is designed NOT to seize-up at all. Stopping abruptly a rotating rotor creates a torque that the supporting axle would most probably not withstand.
Unless there are weak links in the gearbox itself, leading to free wheel rotation.

flybynight · Wed May 04, 2016 5:52 pm

The video seems to be removed for public viewing.
But regardless a tragic accident for all those who died.

Except for boat, it is the only way to really get to these off-shore oil platforms in the North Sea. A lot of flights from Norway as well Scotland.

litz · Wed May 04, 2016 6:07 pm

Another copy is here (for as long as it lasts) ...

(this is, I think, one of the most eerie things I've ever seen)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G9yrX0gaVug

flyingturtle · Wed May 04, 2016 8:20 pm

Quoting breiz (Reply 39):
I assume that the gearbox is designed NOT to seize-up at all. Stopping abruptly a rotating rotor creates a torque that the supporting axle would most probably not withstand.

Thanks, I didn't think of that!

David

breiz · Wed May 04, 2016 9:35 pm

According to the latest news from the Norvegian investigating team, this accident is different from the 2012 one.
The axle did not break. But they do not say where the separation occured.
The rotor detached without any warning of any sort if they are to believe the voice recorder.

Accidentally · Thu May 05, 2016 2:07 am

Holy cow I've never heard of the entire rotor head detaching like that. Someone didn't torque the jesus nut.

Actually, it looks like there is a unit attached to it.

flybynight · Thu May 05, 2016 4:29 pm

Quoting nighthawk (Reply 31):
Can you please get the name of our country right. It is The United Kingdom, or Great Britain/Britain for short. The gentleman who has lost his life was also from Aberdeenshire, SCOTLAND. This has nothing to do with England.

No offense meant. Until I read it in a Norwegian paper just yesterday I didn't realize he was from Scotland.
But, hey, it is the loss of life that really matters here whether he was from England or Scotland. RIP to an individual who died prematurely.

larshjort · Thu May 05, 2016 4:41 pm

The carrier, CHC, has filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. They were in bad shape before the accident, and it certainly didn't help.
http://www.flightglobal.com/news/art...eeks-chapter-11-protection-425014/

Quoting Accidentally (Reply 44):
Someone didn't torque the jesus nut.

There is no single "Jesus" nut on the EC225

flyingturtle · Thu May 19, 2016 5:45 am

Preliminary report is out:

http://www.verticalmag.com/news/arti...nary-report-into-Norway-H225-crash

David

Aesma · Thu May 19, 2016 4:28 pm

Still no clue then.

Unnerving.

SteinarN · Wed Jun 01, 2016 8:15 pm

SHT, the accident investigation bureau, have found the most likely cause for the accident. They have found stress fractures in one of the planetary gears in the second stage of the epicyclic part of the main gear box.

Sorry for link in Norwegian only.

Google translate:
"According to the preliminary breakdown report investigations of the two parts of one of the planetary gears of the second stage of the epicyclic module in the main gearbox (MGB) shown strong signs of fatigue."

http://www.tu.no/artikler/brudd-pa-g...saken-til-helikopterstyrten/347781

[Edited 2016-06-01 13:18:22]

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