Co-Pilot Expected Helo To 'Bounce' After Impacting Carrier Deck

The co-pilot and only surviving crew member of a December 2006 Black Hawk helicopter accident told an Australian military inquiry board not only did he believe a Global Positioning System error cause the accident, but he also thought the aircraft would 'bounce' back from a firm landing.

The Army pilot, who is only identified as Captain No. 7, said he assumed the helicopter would keep flying after impacting the deck of the HMAS Kanimbla during what he said was a routine landing. The aircraft then went over the side of the carrier and sank in the sea off Fiji.

"It did feel a very firm landing, but I did think we would keep flying," he said.

The HMAS Newcastle, HMAS Kanimbla and HMAS Success had been on stand-by in the area to evacuate Australians if an early-December coup in Fiji had sparked violence. Once the Australian Defense Force and the Federal Government determined the threat of violence had abated, the deployment was terminated, as ANN reported.

Black Hawk A25-221 was located by an unmanned aerial vehicle 19 days after the accident, then recovered.

Captain No.7 told the inquiry board Blackhawk emergency training does not take into account a Black Hawk sinking rapidly. He said he ignored procedures by grabbing his breathing device and got out while the aircraft was still moving then swimming to the surface, according to The Australian.

"It was at a depth that required a considerable amount of swimming to get to the surface," he said.

An investigator, identified as Major 5, agreed with Captain 7 that a faulty GPS reading may have been the primary cause of the accident, according to The Age.

"Some indicators were made aware to us that the ship had actually drifted (from its initial location)," Major 5 said. "We looked at the ship's log which suggested the ship had drifted one to 1.2 knots or 400 or 500 meters."

Because the helo was actually closer to the carrier than the instruments indicated, Major 5 said the pilot was forced to pull up more quickly than expected, resulting it into "transient rotor droop."

Major 5 explained to the board a rotor droop occurs when an "aircraft is maneuvered in a fairly demanding way to the edge of its capability causing a loss of power" and is considered unacceptable among army pilots.

Captain 7 denied speed or wind as being factors in the accident and said the landing looked normal. But, he was not able to recall what the airspeed or altitude readings were on the final approach despite the fact it was his job to monitor such things.

"I recall it was a normal approach," he said, "I didn't have to say anything out of the ordinary."

FMI: www.defence.gov.au/army