Helicopter Crash - Queenstown

[Helicoil]

http://i.stuff.co.nz/southland-times/news/66402036/Helicopter-missing-near-Queenstown

[Headset]

Thoughts are with the families.

[Mag seal]

RIP

Very sad news.

[AHL]

NZ CAA are bringing out an emergency AD today grounding all R44's fitted with -7 blades.

[Heliflyer]

Just saw this posted by Heliops Magazine on Facebook:

ATTN: ALL R44 OPERATORS WITH DASH 7 BLADES
Yesterday here in NZ there was an R44 accident that killed two people. Based on what they have found there is an emergency airworthiness directive coming out from the NZ CAA in the next couple of hours immediately grounding ALL R44s that are flying with the Dash 7 blades. If you know an operator in NZ that has an R44 please make them aware of this. We will be posting the AD as soon as we get it and we have been asked by NZ CAA to spread the word.

[HeliflyerNZ]

Just saw this posted by Heliops Magazine on Facebook:

ATTN: ALL R44 OPERATORS WITH DASH 7 BLADES
Yesterday here in NZ there was an R44 accident that killed two people. Based on what they have found there is an emergency airworthiness directive coming out from the NZ CAA in the next couple of hours immediately grounding ALL R44s that are flying with the Dash 7 blades. If you know an operator in NZ that has an R44 please make them aware of this. We will be posting the AD as soon as we get it and we have been asked by NZ CAA to spread the word.

NZ CAA released a CAN back in January regarding the dash 7 blades. Will be interesting to see if it's related.

Link to CAN for dash 7 blades http://www.caa.govt.nz/Airworthiness_Di ... 62-003.pdf

[AHL]

https://www.caa.govt.nz/Airworthiness_D ... ctives.htm

[arrrj]

DCA/R44/31 Prohibition of Flight - C016-7 Main Rotor Blades
Applicability All Robinson R44 series helicopters fitted with main rotor blades P/N
C016-7.
Requirement: To prevent the possibility of main rotor blade separation and
consequent loss of the helicopter, further flight is prohibited.
Compliance : Before further flight.
Note 1: Aircraft in remote locations may complete one further flight to the
nearest appropriate facility, provided that they are subject to a
detailed visual inspection of the blade skin in the region of the
outboard chord increase.
Continuing Airworthiness Notice CAN 62-003 refers.
Ensure blade is clean and inspect upper and lower surface paying
attention to defects in paint which may signify cracking.
Note 2: This Airworthiness Directive is issued as a result of initial advice from
the investigators conducting the scene investigation into a fatal R44
accident near Queenstown that occurred on 19 Feb 2015. Scene
examination suggests that the aircraft may have experienced an inflight
main rotor blade failure similar to that reported in CAA
Continuing Airworthiness Notice 62-003. The AD will remain in place
until further information is available.
Effective date: 21 February 2015

[rotors99]

Rest in Peace fellow Aviators!!

With the never ending deaths from Robinson failures.........when will people learn & reject them totally, till all of Frank's garbage is burying at the local dump where they belong

I am sure there will be a spate of Robi lovers poobarring this statement, but sadly it is true

Happy Landings

[HHunt]

Rest in Peace fellow Aviators!!

With the never ending deaths from Robinson failures.........when will people learn & reject them totally, till all of Frank's garbage is burying at the local dump where they belong

I am sure there will be a spate of Robi lovers poobarring this statement, but sadly it is true

Happy Landings

AGREED 100%

[flyguy45]

Condolances must first go the familys involved. No one deserves to go out like this. I have to agree with the other posts here about Robinson. Their market positon and ability to turn out a cheap product appears all to often to come at the cost of those people who buy their products. "you get what you pay for" When a product contiually fails and lives are lost then surely a new approach needs to be taken. Fuel tanks, blade issues, etc its like they are doing their R&D on the go and getting away with it. Yes Im sure the stats will say that with type hours flown etc that Robbies are one of the safest to fly, and people will continue to buy and fly their product because its realitively cheap, and good luck to you, but for me I never have and never will step into a Robinson as a PIC or as a pax and just maybe this will means I have improved my chances of being buried as an old man. Why risk it? Give me a Jetty, an H500 or H300 anyday!

[SIR_SMP]

Im not a robbo expert as I try to avoid anything to do with them so correct me if I am wrong, but were the dash 7's not supposed to replace the -2 and -5 ie you had to cough up the cash for an upgrade to the 7's?

when will it end, way to over invest in a hunk of crap
how much were those bladders again....
whats an astro worth......

need I go on??

[HHunt]

Im not a robbo expert as I try to avoid anything to do with them so correct me if I am wrong, but were the dash 7's not supposed to replace the -2 and -5 ie you had to cough up the cash for an upgrade to the 7's?

when will it end, way to over invest in a hunk of crap
how much were those bladders again....
whats an astro worth......

need I go on??

Yep they are pieces of s#!t alright!! and I have done a fair bit in them in the early days of the r22 (and hated every minute)

[Enjoying It]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XuXDtZjqbQw

It'll be interesting to see if the CAA take any of the recommendations on.

Steve Combe, 43, and James Patterson-Gardner, 18, were killed when the blades of the helicopter struck the cabin, breaking it up in mid-air, in the Lochy Valley in February 2015.

Combe, a very experienced pilot, was taking Patterson-Gardner on a training flight.

Combe had more the 4500 hours of experience flying helicopters, including 2145 in Robinsons, 2435 of mountain flying and 1380 hours of instruction.

Patterson-Gardner had flown 10 hours of training flights in the R44, though he had been around aviation all his life.

The Robinson was owned by Over The Top, a long-standing Queenstown business owned by Louisa Patterson, Patterson-Gardner's mother.

She was a very experienced and well-known pilot with over 12,000 flight hours.

Coroner Alexandra Cunninghame said the sequence which killed the men occurred in a matter of seconds.

Both were killed instantly on impact.

There have been 19 deaths in Robinson helicopters in Aotearoa due to similar incidents.

The Transport Accident Investigation Commission said their design meant they were uniquely risky in mountainous terrain and weather conditions common in New Zealand.

"James was at the controls of Robinson R44 ZK-IPY as it flew down the Lochy Valley at 102 knots ground speed, at the end of a training flight. He was being trained and supervised by a very experienced and safety conscious pilot and flight instructor," Coroner Cunninghame said in her findings.

"James, who had flown a total of ten hours of training flights in ZK-IPY, was appropriately experienced to fly down the Lochy Valley on a training flight.

"The Lochy Valley is a mountainous region which is susceptible to turbulence and changes in wind speed and direction. It is more likely than not that ZK-IPY encountered an abrupt change in wind direction or an abrupt gust on a day that for any other make of helicopter, would have been perfect for flying, when only light turbulence was expected.

"An airspeed of 102 knots increased the risk of a right roll and/ or main rotor blade divergence during a low-G event. The risk was also increased because a student pilot was at the controls.

"The encounter by a student pilot with an abrupt change in wind direction or gust at 102 knots ground speed resulted in a main rotor blade divergence sequence. The blades of the helicopter struck the cabin, breaking it up in mid-air."

The coroner said this sequence occurred in a matter of seconds. Both pilots were killed instantly on impact.

"In any other type of helicopter, the accident would not have occurred in these circumstances. The design of the Robinson rotor head makes the R44 [and the R22] particularly vulnerable to gusts, turbulence, and wind direction changes, even at relatively conservative speeds."

The coroner advised that until more research was done, which would provide greater certainty regarding the cause of main rotor blade divergence, Robinson helicopters should not be flown over 70 KIAS (Knots Indicated Airspeed) in areas where moderate to severe turbulence was likely.

"Many areas in New Zealand are mountainous and moderate to severe turbulence is likely. Therefore, Robinson helicopters are vulnerable for much of the flying that is done in them in New Zealand."

She also issued a raft of recommendations in the hope that "no other family will experience the loss of a loved one in a rotor blade divergence incident in a Robinson helicopter in this country".

Among the recommendations was the Civil Aviation Authority and the Transport Accident Investigation Commission working with the Ministry of Transport to study the Robinson's rotor blade system, and regulations to prohibit the helicopters being flown in potentially dangerous conditions.

She also recommended limiting their speed to 70 Knots Indicated Airspeed.

She called on owners and operators of helicopters to fit their cockpits with video recording systems.

The Transport Accident Investigation Commission has the issue with Robinsons listed on its watchlist of pressing safety concerns.

CAA 'working through' findings
A Civil Aviation Authority spokesperson said they were studying the coroner's recommendations.

"The CAA is carefully working through the comprehensive findings and recommendations of the coroner, which are largely policy and technically focused," the authority said in a statement.

"This will take some time, and our process will include working through them with other agencies and stakeholders and so this means that at this stage of our analysis we are not in a position to make comment on the way they will be addressed.

"The CAA acknowledges the coroner's findings. We will ensure our response to these recommendations is thoroughly considered, balanced and continues to maintain robust safety oversight of the aviation industry."

[Rotorpilot]

See this NZ TV episode. You will need to fast forward but some interesting points.
Rotor head tri pivot points design

https://youtu.be/XuXDtZjqbQw

[CyclicH145]

is there an actual report anywhere?