Wed, Apr 29, 2009
Tough Times For Offshore Helo Ops
Following the April 1st crash of an AS332 Super Puma that took
16 lives, BP Oil resumed using Super Puma helicopters for offshore
operations after the aircraft were grounded at the behest of EASA.
The government agency had ordered safety inspections before
flight could resume. The Eurocopter AS332L2, operated by Bond
Offshore Helicopters, went down off the coast of Aberdeenshire,
with loss of 14 pax and two crew.
The accident came less than six weeks after another
Bond-operated Super Puma was forced to ditch in the North Sea, 125
miles east of Aberdeen. In that accident, all 16 persons onboard
were rescued.
A spokesperson for BP has confirmed that proper and mandated
safety inspections had been carried out before operations resumed,
though the oil company is using equipment from CHC and Bristow to
carry on in the interim. BP is evaluating Bond before engaging in
further operations with that company. A task force has also been
compiled from industry leaders to provide additional oversight.
Initial reports from the AAIB have "determined that a failure
within the epicyclic reduction gearbox module of the main rotor
gearbox resulted in the rupture of the gearbox case, which allowed
the main rotor head to separate from the helicopter. Examination of
the remains of the epicyclic gearbox, and associated areas of the
helicopter, continues apace with the aim of establishing as soon
as possible the sequence of the failure and initiating
cause."
As a result, AAIB issued Safety Recommendation 2009-051 in which
they stated, "It is recommended that Eurocopter, with the European
Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), develop and implement an inspection
of the internal components of the main rotor gearbox epicyclic
module for all AS332L2 and EC225LP helicopters as a matter of
urgency to ensure the continued airworthiness of the main rotor
gearbox. This inspection is in addition to that specified in EASA
Emergency Airworthiness Directive 2009-0087-E, and should be made
mandatory with immediate effect by an additional EASA Emergency
Airworthiness Directive."
It's been a tough time for offshore helo operators... less than
a month before the Super Puma downing, all but one person onboard a
Sikorsky S-92 were killed when that offshore transport ditched off
the coast of Newfoundland. Investigators believe that helo,
operated by Cougar Helicopters, suffered broken titanium studs in
the aircraft's gearbox oil bowl, leading to failure of the
aircraft's transmission system.
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