2006 Morecambe Bay helicopter crash
Encyclopedia
The 2006 Morecambe Bay Helicopter Crash was a fatal air incident that occurred on 27 December 2006 at approximately 18:40 GMT, whilst replacement crew were being transported between the Millom
and Morecambe
gas platforms
situated approximately 24 miles from the shoreline of Morecambe Bay
, Lancashire, England.
Rescue efforts recovered the bodies of six men, including those of the two pilots. A seventh passenger was initially recorded as missing; however, the search for the missing man was called off on 24 January 2007.
The helicopter was a Eurocopter AS365N
, registration
G-BLUN, owned by CHC
. The aircraft was contracted by Centrica
, the company that manages the gas platform to which the helicopter was travelling.
Initial rescue was undertaken by a volunteer team of the local Royal National Lifeboat Institution
(RNLI) rescue service, operating out of nearby Lytham St Annes
and was co-ordinated by HM Coastguard.
The formal report into the accident, released in October 2008, stated that "human factors" were the cause of the crash. The co-pilot, who was the handling pilot at the time, complained he felt unwell and that he was running into difficulties. He asked the commander for assistance, whereupon the commander took control of the helicopter. However, the transfer of control from co-pilot to commander was roughly four seconds after the co-pilot had asked for assistance. The report found that the transfer of control wasn't smooth enough and that the commander wasn't "mentally primed to take control of the helicopter." The report concluded that:
Millom
Millom is a town and civil parish on the estuary of the River Duddon in the southwest of Cumbria, England. The name is Cumbrian dialect for "At the mills". The town is accessible both by rail and an A class road...
and Morecambe
Morecambe
Morecambe is a resort town and civil parish within the City of Lancaster in Lancashire, England. As of 2001 it has a resident population of 38,917. It faces into Morecambe Bay...
gas platforms
North Sea oil
North Sea oil is a mixture of hydrocarbons, comprising liquid oil and natural gas, produced from oil reservoirs beneath the North Sea.In the oil industry, the term "North Sea" often includes areas such as the Norwegian Sea and the area known as "West of Shetland", "the Atlantic Frontier" or "the...
situated approximately 24 miles from the shoreline of Morecambe Bay
Morecambe Bay
Morecambe Bay is a large bay in northwest England, nearly due east of the Isle of Man and just to the south of the Lake District National Park. It is the largest expanse of intertidal mudflats and sand in the United Kingdom, covering a total area of 310 km².-Natural features:The rivers Leven,...
, Lancashire, England.
Rescue efforts recovered the bodies of six men, including those of the two pilots. A seventh passenger was initially recorded as missing; however, the search for the missing man was called off on 24 January 2007.
The helicopter was a Eurocopter AS365N
Eurocopter Dauphin
The Eurocopter SA 365/AS365 Dauphin 2 is a medium-weight multipurpose twin-engine helicopter manufactured by Eurocopter .-Design and development:...
, registration
Aircraft registration
An aircraft registration is a unique alphanumeric string that identifies a civil aircraft, in similar fashion to a licence plate on an automobile...
G-BLUN, owned by CHC
CHC Helicopter
CHC Helicopter is one of the world’s largest helicopter services company specializing in: Transportation to offshore oil and gas platforms; Civilian search and rescue services; Helicopter maintenance repair and overhaul...
. The aircraft was contracted by Centrica
Centrica
Centrica plc is a multinational utility company, based in the United Kingdom but also with interests in North America. Centrica is the largest supplier of gas to domestic customers in the UK, and one of the largest suppliers of electricity, operating under the trading names "Scottish Gas" in...
, the company that manages the gas platform to which the helicopter was travelling.
Initial rescue was undertaken by a volunteer team of the local Royal National Lifeboat Institution
Royal National Lifeboat Institution
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution is a charity that saves lives at sea around the coasts of Great Britain, Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, as well as on selected inland waterways....
(RNLI) rescue service, operating out of nearby Lytham St Annes
Lytham St Annes
Lytham St Annes is a conurbation in the Fylde district of Lancashire, England. The neighbouring towns of Lytham and St-Anne's-on-the-Sea have grown together and now form a seaside resort...
and was co-ordinated by HM Coastguard.
Investigation
The investigation into the crash started the same night as the accident. The flight data recorders were eventually recovered on 17 January 2007 after severe weather hampered recovery attempts. The storms also hampered efforts to find and recover those lost in the incident. A lot of speculation started to appear into the possible causes for the tragic crash. Because offshore helicopter operations are so crucial to the day to day running of offshore platforms, the AAIB felt it necessary to release a preliminary bulletin as soon as possible. A special bulletin released by the UK Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB) (S1/2007) stated: "The conclusion of this preliminary examination is that there are no signs of pre-impact malfunction of any major mechanical components, including the tail rotor and its drive shaft."The formal report into the accident, released in October 2008, stated that "human factors" were the cause of the crash. The co-pilot, who was the handling pilot at the time, complained he felt unwell and that he was running into difficulties. He asked the commander for assistance, whereupon the commander took control of the helicopter. However, the transfer of control from co-pilot to commander was roughly four seconds after the co-pilot had asked for assistance. The report found that the transfer of control wasn't smooth enough and that the commander wasn't "mentally primed to take control of the helicopter." The report concluded that: