April 2009 North Sea helicopter crash
Encyclopedia
The April 2009 North Sea helicopter crash, which involved a Eurocopter AS332L2 Super Puma Mk 2 belonging to Bond Offshore Helicopters
, engaged on flight 85N, that crashed 11 nautical miles (20.4 km) northeast of Peterhead, Scotland just before 2:00 pm on 1 April 2009 in the North Sea
while returning from a BP
oil platform
in the Miller oilfield
, 240 km (149.1 mi) northeast of Peterhead. The crash killed all sixteen people aboard.
The helicopter was flown by Captain Paul Burnham and co-pilot Richard Menzies, both working for Bond Offshore Helicopters. Most of the victims were employees of KCA Deutag
Drilling.
Bond also operated a very similar Eurocopter EC225LP helicopter which crashed in the North Sea on 18 February 2009, in which all 18 aboard escaped and were rescued.
The most serious previous North Sea helicopter accident had been the 1986 British International Helicopters Chinook crash, when a Boeing 234 Chinook crashed killing 45 people.
The Air Accidents Investigation Branch
(AAIB) chartered the seismic survey vessel Vigilant for its initial investigation, which arrived on site on 3 April, carrying specialised sonar equipment to locate the wreckage on the seabed. The aircraft was thought to be lying in approximately 90 metres of water, but as of 3 April the exact location was not known. No EPIRB beacon signal had been reported.
Grampian Police stated on the evening of 4 April that they had identified all the bodies. One of them, Nolan Goble, was the brother of former professional footballer, Steve Goble
. A second vessel, the Diving Support Vessel Bibby Topaz, was chartered to assist the work, and sailed from Peterhead on 4 April, to attempt to recover the wreckage and the cockpit voice
and flight data recorder
s.
The wreckage of the Super Puma was subsequently located on the sea bed in 100 m (328.1 ft) by the Bibby Topaz. The remaining eight bodies were recovered from inside the fuselage. The combined FDR/CVR was recovered and sent to the Farnborough headquarters of the AAIB for analysis, as was all the wreckage.
(BEA), Eurocopter, the European Aviation Safety Agency
(EASA), and the UK Civil Aviation Authority
to participate. The AAIB released a third press statement on 4 April 2009 stating that work to recover the wreckage of G-REDL was continuing.
On 11 April the AAIB released its initial report into the accident in which it stated that the immediate cause of the accident was a "catastrophic failure of the main rotor gearbox" and the consequent detachment of the main rotor. Three safety recommendations were made, the first of which was that all Super Puma helicopters should receive additional checks on the main rotor gearbox epicyclic module.
On 17 April the AAIB released a second report noting that metallic debris from the gearbox had been detected 34 flying hours prior to the helicopter crash. However, "no signs of an incipient gearbox failure were detected". In response, the EASA ordered an "urgent" inspection of the gearboxes on both the AS332L2 Super Puma and the EC225LP Super Puma. Helicopter operators were given to 24 April to complete the inspections.
On 16 July the AAIB published AAIB Special Bulletin: 5/2009 detailing further progress in the investigation, including two further safety recommendations 2009-74 and 2009-75. These respectively called on the EASA to urgently review the manuals on magnetic particle detection and on planetary gear inspection.
Bond Offshore Helicopters
Bond Offshore Helicopters is a British Helicopter operator, specialising in providing offshore helicopter transportation services between Aberdeen, Scotland and several North Sea Oil platforms...
, engaged on flight 85N, that crashed 11 nautical miles (20.4 km) northeast of Peterhead, Scotland just before 2:00 pm on 1 April 2009 in the North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
while returning from a BP
BP
BP p.l.c. is a global oil and gas company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the third-largest energy company and fourth-largest company in the world measured by revenues and one of the six oil and gas "supermajors"...
oil platform
Oil platform
An oil platform, also referred to as an offshore platform or, somewhat incorrectly, oil rig, is a lаrge structure with facilities to drill wells, to extract and process oil and natural gas, and to temporarily store product until it can be brought to shore for refining and marketing...
in the Miller oilfield
Miller oilfield
The Miller oilfield is a deep reservoir under the North Sea, 240 kilometres northeast of Peterhead in UKCS Blocks 16/7b and 16/8b. It was discovered in 1982 by BP in a water depth of 100 metres. Production from Miller field started in June 1992, and plateau production was from late 1992 to 1997 at...
, 240 km (149.1 mi) northeast of Peterhead. The crash killed all sixteen people aboard.
The helicopter was flown by Captain Paul Burnham and co-pilot Richard Menzies, both working for Bond Offshore Helicopters. Most of the victims were employees of KCA Deutag
KCA DEUTAG
KCA DEUTAG is an international oil and gas services company with headquarters in Aberdeen, United Kingdom. It has approximately 8,000 employees and operates in more than 20 countries worldwide.-Background:...
Drilling.
Bond also operated a very similar Eurocopter EC225LP helicopter which crashed in the North Sea on 18 February 2009, in which all 18 aboard escaped and were rescued.
The most serious previous North Sea helicopter accident had been the 1986 British International Helicopters Chinook crash, when a Boeing 234 Chinook crashed killing 45 people.
Recovery
The search for survivors was called off on the evening of 2 April, rescuers admitting that there was no chance of finding anyone alive, and the Vigilant returned to Peterhead on 4 April. The 8 bodies found a few hours after the crash were taken to Aberdeen and on to a police mortuary.The Air Accidents Investigation Branch
Air Accidents Investigation Branch
The Air Accidents Investigation Branch investigates air accidents in the United Kingdom. It is a branch of the Department for Transport and is based on the grounds of Farnborough Airport near Aldershot, Rushmoor, Hampshire.-History:...
(AAIB) chartered the seismic survey vessel Vigilant for its initial investigation, which arrived on site on 3 April, carrying specialised sonar equipment to locate the wreckage on the seabed. The aircraft was thought to be lying in approximately 90 metres of water, but as of 3 April the exact location was not known. No EPIRB beacon signal had been reported.
Grampian Police stated on the evening of 4 April that they had identified all the bodies. One of them, Nolan Goble, was the brother of former professional footballer, Steve Goble
Steve Goble
Stephen Goble is a retired English footballer who played in England for Norwich City and Cambridge United, in the Netherlands for FC Groningen, FC Utrecht and Heracles Almelo, and in Sweden for Skellefteå AIK....
. A second vessel, the Diving Support Vessel Bibby Topaz, was chartered to assist the work, and sailed from Peterhead on 4 April, to attempt to recover the wreckage and the cockpit voice
Cockpit voice recorder
A cockpit voice recorder , often referred to as a "black box", is a flight recorder used to record the audio environment in the flight deck of an aircraft for the purpose of investigation of accidents and incidents...
and flight data recorder
Flight data recorder
A flight data recorder is an electronic device employed to record any instructions sent to any electronic systems on an aircraft. It is a device used to record specific aircraft performance parameters...
s.
The wreckage of the Super Puma was subsequently located on the sea bed in 100 m (328.1 ft) by the Bibby Topaz. The remaining eight bodies were recovered from inside the fuselage. The combined FDR/CVR was recovered and sent to the Farnborough headquarters of the AAIB for analysis, as was all the wreckage.
Investigation
The AAIB invited the Bureau d'Enquêtes et d'Analyses pour la sécurité de l'Aviation CivileBureau d'Enquêtes et d'Analyses pour la sécurité de l'Aviation Civile
The Bureau d'Enquêtes et d'Analyses pour la Sécurité de l'Aviation Civile is an agency of the French government, responsible for investigating aviation accidents and making safety recommendations based on what is learned from those investigations. It is headquartered in Building 153 on the grounds...
(BEA), Eurocopter, the European Aviation Safety Agency
European Aviation Safety Agency
The European Aviation Safety Agency is an agency of the European Union with offices in Cologne, Germany, which has been given regulatory and executive tasks in the field of civilian aviation safety. It was created on 15 July 2002, and it reached full functionality in 2008, taking over functions...
(EASA), and the UK Civil Aviation Authority
Civil Aviation Authority
This is a list of national and supra-national civil aviation authorities.-See also:* Air route authority between the United States and the People's Republic of China* National Transportation Safety Board -External links:****...
to participate. The AAIB released a third press statement on 4 April 2009 stating that work to recover the wreckage of G-REDL was continuing.
On 11 April the AAIB released its initial report into the accident in which it stated that the immediate cause of the accident was a "catastrophic failure of the main rotor gearbox" and the consequent detachment of the main rotor. Three safety recommendations were made, the first of which was that all Super Puma helicopters should receive additional checks on the main rotor gearbox epicyclic module.
On 17 April the AAIB released a second report noting that metallic debris from the gearbox had been detected 34 flying hours prior to the helicopter crash. However, "no signs of an incipient gearbox failure were detected". In response, the EASA ordered an "urgent" inspection of the gearboxes on both the AS332L2 Super Puma and the EC225LP Super Puma. Helicopter operators were given to 24 April to complete the inspections.
On 16 July the AAIB published AAIB Special Bulletin: 5/2009 detailing further progress in the investigation, including two further safety recommendations 2009-74 and 2009-75. These respectively called on the EASA to urgently review the manuals on magnetic particle detection and on planetary gear inspection.