Helicopter Ditched In North Sea

[sczscoob]

My heart goes out to all the families involved.

It's always something in the back of my mind & i've been offshore for over 13 years & i also fly with Bond.

RIP Lads

[col666]

R.I.P. guys ,A black day for the Oil Industry.

[paul555sti]

according the the news at supper time there was a mayday, then silence

Some news channels said there was one and some said there wasnt.

[david_taylor]

Just spoke to my mates dad so thankfully he is safe and still on his rig due to the crash.

Heart goes out to all families effected, as I know that sinking feeling I had for the past few hours.

Dave

[markymark]

It is indeed a very sad day for the oil & gas industry

[rtm4676]

My dads a 39 year vet on the rigs and my best mates works in the control room for shell, received a pretty somber message earlier. Sad day for all connected with the North Sea. I was recently at RGIT in Montrose where they were talking about the recent downed chopper, this situation sounds very different.

[zeolite]

Was in Aberdeen today doing some reports when I heard the terrible news.

I was on the Miller quite a lot when they were drilling the wells back in the 90s.

A black day.

[jonboywrx]

Good to hear your safe Ross. Thoughts going out to all families.

Jon

[Guest]

gearbox failure?

during my time offshore I was on a super puma that had a gearbox problems, they "switched over" - don't like doing it though and we had a briefing after landing. was also on one that had to make evasive manoeuvres coming into aberdeen and a flock of birds. luckily nothing bad happened.

never flew with bond - iirc they do mostly BP.

terrible news, one thing I hated about going offshore was the chopper rides and the flight suits and knowledge of physics & human anatomy - if they hit the water at speed, not much chance.

my uncle was killed on the Chinook crash not long before the piper alpha incident.

sympathies go out to all in north sea just now.

[phil]

Gutted for all involved

[Spaceman]

so gutted had to get my best mate stu to come visit me tonight, was his chopper on his way home this morning, first thing i knew was text from inspector at falkirk ( my dad ) i can`t bear to watch news now it terrifies me. Might just be a dafty but after everything i don`t care

Greig

Anyone wanna yak pm me

Edited April 1, 2009 by Spaceman

[bigal024]

Terrible news guys. My condolences to anyone who has friends/family involved in this.

Al

[thefastone]

Well thats it, they have stopped searching for the night by the sounds of it...

I'm dreading my work ringing in the next couple of days... it probably wont, but you never know, I've already done this kid of job once before...

[ScottyRB320]

Well thats it, they have stopped searching for the night by the sounds of it...

I'm dreading my work ringing in the next couple of days... it probably wont, but you never know, I've already done this kid of job once before...

I hope they don't call you either mate!

I too have been involved in a few of these and it is not nice, lost 5 very close mates in a Lynx crash in Croatia during the Bosnia days (Ex Forces working in the choppers)

I had a wee moment of reflection for the lads from RAF Lossiemouth and possibly Bulmer yesterday and the stars that are the laddies and gents from the RNLI

Although i think the majority of politicians are pond life Salmond looked visibly shocked yesterday when he spoke.

Rest in peace guys and my thoughts and prayers go out to the families.

[Maxxed_Ross]

Thanks for putting up all your thoughts guys

It's only when things like this happen you remember how dangerous a job this really is

It's going to be a long day out here today... I've never known the place so quiet

[P1Andy]

yeah a very somber atmosphere out here also. Thoughts go out to the families.

[ScottyRB320]

yeah a very somber atmosphere out here also. Thoughts go out to the families.

Yeah same here.

Yesterday was actually really nice to see, guys in the Control Room in silence listening and hoping for some positive news on the radios, showing respect and understanding for what was unfolding in front of them.

Latest reports out of Aberdeen this morning point towards the majority of the passengers coming from 1 company - don't want to feed the gossip mill would rather wait until it is in the public domain and the relevant families have all been contacted.

Bond A/C grounded and the remainder of the operators are planning to fly as normal unless a fleet wide grounding is imposed.

As with all things of this nature rumours are starting to pick up about possible causes of the failure and subsequent crash, i wish everyone would avoid speculation and wait on solid evidence which can take a large amount of time to gather before jumping to conclusions (Not on the SIDC of course i am talking about the "Gutter press")

Regards

ScottyB

[hosstheboss]

We (Weatherford) had a guy on the chopper. 40 years old with 4 kids. I've been in this industry for over 20 years now and had my share of North Sea helicopter flights, some good and some bad but no matter what you are never prepared for things like this.

[westtra]

scotty it was confirmed last night that 9 uk and 1 european KCA personel were on board. Have heard that a few are possibly local to me. I am unsure who the other 4 work for.

My thoughts go out to there families and friends.

[ScottyRB320]

scotty it was confirmed last night that 9 uk and 1 european KCA personel were on board.

Yeah same info i had, frantic calls last night and this morning to mates who work for them and some who go to Millar on a regular basis and good news all round, sadly though i know others will not be as lucky as me

[cristaltips]

My thoughts are with all the families who have lost loved ones, and to all you guys out there waiting for news of friends and colleagues.

Tis a very sad day.

RIP.

[eck]

We (Weatherford) had a guy on the chopper. 40 years old with 4 kids. I've been in this industry for over 20 years now and had my share of North Sea helicopter flights, some good and some bad but no matter what you are never prepared for things like this.

Currently in Tunisia working and the wife called last night to tell me the news.

My boss in Egypt called me this morning to confirm the loss of a this good man, totally gutted had worked with him with 2 different service companies.

Thoughts with all families such a tragic waste of life.

RIP.

[Maxxed_Ross]

Well for those who don't know the names have been released

Turns out I know two of them

This has also been released by Bristows Group on helicopter safety and some of the other recent incidents. It's quite an interesting read

POTENTIAL CONCERNS AMONGST SHELL GROUP STAFF ABOUT HELICOPTER SAFETY

You may be aware of the tragic accident this afternoon, Wednesday 1 April, in the North Sea. Although details are currently sketchy, we know that a Bond Helicopters AS 332 L2 Super Puma on contract to BP has crashed into the sea off the coast of Scotland. We understand that the search for survivors continues, but that there appears to be little hope of finding anyone alive.

This is the latest in a spate of helicopter accidents that have occurred in our industry over the last 3 months, and it is inevitable that the confidence of our staff that fly in helicopters will have been shaken. It is important, therefore, to ensure that, wherever possible, the facts are made known and rumours are quashed. The intention of this note is to provide you with information to address concerns amongst the leadership teams and staff who use the helicopters in support of Group operations.

The recent accidents have involved 4 helicopter types in use across the Shell Group: the Sikorsky S 92A and S 76 and the Eurocopter AS 332L2 and EC 225 ‘Super Pumas’. The most important issue to be aware of is that, as far as we can ascertain, the reasons for the accidents on each type are unconnected – there are no ‘common threads’ to indicate that helicopter operations are being conducted in an unsafe or unsatisfactory manner. Furthermore, Shell Aircraft (SAL) is involved either in investigating the occurrences or, at least, in working with the manufacturers and operators to learn the lessons from all the investigations and ensure that, where appropriate, they are taken forward into our operations and that any risks are proactively managed to ALARP. Dealing with each type in turn:

a. Sikorsky S 92A. We have 3 of this type in service in Brunei Shell and a further 16 spread across North Sea, Gulf of Mexico and Malaysian operations. Several in-flight incidents last year in Brunei resulted in the need for precautionary landings and the temporary suspension of operations whilst we worked with the manufacturer to understand the causes. We are confident that we know why the problems occurred and that the actions taken will reduce the risk of a recurrence to an acceptable level. Furthermore, should a problem recur, our flight crews will be able to deal with the situation.

The cause of the recent fatal accident involving this type off Newfoundland is still under investigation, but the Canadian Transportation Safety Board (TSB) have released information about the likely initiating event. This problem is not the same as those that affected our aircraft in Brunei, and action to address the problem has been taken on all aircraft worldwide.

b. Sikorsky S 76. There are 20 of this type in Group service across the world. In Jan 09 an S76C++ contracted from PHI in the Gulf of Mexico crashed in to swampland in Southern Louisiana, resulting in the loss of 8 crew and passengers. Although the investigation remains ongoing, the primary cause of this accident has been confirmed as a bird strike. A full review of pilot awareness and training for such an event was initiated globally following the accident and local procedures were modified to reduce the risk of recurrence. Work is ongoing to develop further barriers that will apply both to our local and global operations.

c. Eurocopter EC 225. In February 09, a Bond Helicopters EC225, flying from Aberdeen, crashed in the North Sea, but all passengers and crew were safely recovered. This operator does not fly for the Shell Group, although the EC225 is used by Shell (3 in N Sea and one in Australia) and will remain a primary contract aircraft into the future. The UK Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB) has already issued a preliminary report on this accident, which indicates human factors and pilot procedures as being the primary causes. Although it also indicates a possible failure of one cockpit warning instrument (which may have been a contributory factor), there are no indications of airworthiness issues with the aircraft. Shell's own operators have reviewed their operating procedures as a result of this accident.

d. Eurocopter AS 332L2. There are none of this type in Group service. At this stage the cause of today’s accident has not been determined, and an investigation will obviously be conducted by the AAIB.

In summary, although having 4 major accidents in such a short space of time is unprecedented, there are, at this stage, no common themes that link these accidents and each is currently under investigation by the appropriate national air accident investigation body. SAL and Regional aviation staff remain actively engaged in each case and are in a position to take positive action should the need arise. SAL enjoys extensive high-level access to each of the helicopter manufacturers and the operators, and Regional Aviation Staff maintain close contacts with all the operators at a local level. As a result, we have a high degree of confidence that we have the best possible understanding of each occurrence and that we have direct access to the necessary expertise to maintain our Air Transport safety assurance.

Staff with specific concerns should address them initially to Regional Aviation staff, but SAL's advisory service is also available to support and inform staff as required.

[RA Dunk]

so reassuring

[ScottyRB320]

Link to the Initial Bulletin from the Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB) for the crash in February where all crew were found safe and well.

http://www.aaib.gov.uk/cms_resources/S3-2009%20G-REDU.pdf

ScottyB