News & Comment

SNAPpy Action in Norway – The Southern Norway Airspace Project

Air Traffic Management / Airspace, Airfields / Heliports / Helidecks, Fixed Wing, Helicopters, News, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Safety Management

SNAPpy Action in Norway – The Southern Norway Airspace Project Norwegian Air Navigation Service Provider (ANSP) AVINOR has established the Southern Norway Airspace Project (SNAP), that went live in late 2014.  SNAP was established: … to address present and future challenges regarding capacity, safety, environment and effectiveness. SNAP will provide a new airspace organisation, with associated working […]

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Flight Crew Incapacitation – Oxygen System Failure

Accidents & Incidents, Fixed Wing, Human Factors / Performance, Safety Management, Special Mission Aircraft

Flight Crew Incapacitation – Oxygen System Failure The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) has published their investigation report on a case of hypoxia in an unpressurised twin turboprop survey aircraft: On 1 August 2014, at about 0935 EST, a Reims Aviation F406 aircraft, registered VH-EYQ, departed Emerald, Queensland, on an aerial survey task with a pilot

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ARMED FORCES CORPORATE COVENANT

Aerossurance Commits to the Armed Forces Corporate Covenant

Military / Defence, News

Aerossurance Commits to the Armed Forces Corporate Covenant Aerossurance is proud to have committed to support the armed forces community by being a signatory of the Armed Forces Corporate Covenant. The two key principles are: No member of the armed forces community should face disadvantage in the provision of public and commercial services compared to

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Aerossurance Will be Attending Heli-Expo 2015

Helicopters, News

Aerossurance Will be Attending Heli-Expo 2015 Aerossurance will be attending the helicopter industry’s biggest annual gathering, Heli-Expo, in Orlando, Florida in early March. Heli-Expo is organised annually by the Helicopter Association International (HAI) and is expected to attract in the region of 20,000 attendees. We will be in Orlando 28 February – 7 March, participating in several industry

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Turbomeca Arrano Sole Engine for Airbus Helicopters X4 (H160)

Design & Certification, Helicopters, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy

Turbomeca Arrano Sole Engine for Airbus Helicopters X4 (H160) Airbus Helicopters have announced they have selected the Turbomeca (Safran) Arrano as the sole engine for their new medium helicopter the X4 (UPDATE: to be named the H160).  Airbus has also dropped the option of the Pratt & Whitney Canada PW210E (a development of the PW210S in the

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Dash 8 Tail Strike: Weakness in Stabilised Approach Procedures

Accidents & Incidents, Fixed Wing, Safety Management

Dash 8 Tail Strike: Weakness in Stabilised Approach Procedures The Canadian Transportation Safety Board (TSB) has released their final report on a heavy landing and tail strike that occurred to Porter Airlines Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 C-GLQO landing at Sault Ste. Marie Airport on 26 May 2013.  The aircraft landed hard and the tail of the aircraft contacted the

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Radar for Wave Height Measurement

Helicopters, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Safety Management, Survivability / Ditching

Radar for Wave Height Measurement The EnRoute Wave Height Measurement Problem In 2011 Canadian Transportation Safety Board (TSB) issued their investigation into a S-92A accident offshore Canada in 2009, in which 17 people died and one passenger, Robert Decker, survived.  Additionally this accident was subject to a public inquiry.  The Hon Robert Wells QC’s Offshore Helicopter Safety Inquiry (OSHSI)

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Wait to Weight & Balance – Lessons from a Loss of Control

Accidents & Incidents, Business Aviation, Fixed Wing, Human Factors / Performance, Logistics, Safety Management

Wait to Weight & Balance – Lessons from a PC-12 Loss of Control On take off, pitch control of a Pilatus PC-12 was lost resulting in a series of pitch oscillations and stall warnings.  Fortuitously the pilot was able to abort the take off with only damage to one main wheel.  The incident could have been

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Aerossurance Joins HeliOffshore

Helicopters, News, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Safety Culture, Safety Management

Aerossurance Joins HeliOffshore   HeliOffshore is a global safety-focused organisation formed by major offshore helicopter operators. They state: We enable helicopter operators to develop, share and apply best practices, create and use advanced technology, and advocate for harmonised flight standards. HeliOffshore is dedicated to achieving the highest levels of safety, in the air and on the

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Inadvertent Fire Bottle Discharge During Maintenance

Accidents & Incidents, Human Factors / Performance, Maintenance / Continuing Airworthiness / CAMOs, Safety Management

Inadvertent Fire Bottle Discharge During Maintenance The CHIRP Charitable Trust, who run the UK’s Confidential Human Factors Incident Reporting Programme, has reported on an inadvertent fire bottle discharge incident during maintenance in their Air Transport FEEDBACK Issue 113. The Aircraft was on a heavy maintenance input and several teams were busy working in the flight

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Sea State Forecasting – CHIRP

Helicopters, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Safety Management, Survivability / Ditching

Sea State Forecasting – CHIRP The CHIRP Charitable Trust, who run the UK’s Confidential Human Factors Incident Reporting Programme, today published Air Transport FEEDBACK Issue 113. This included discussion of a report on sea state forecasting in the North Sea. The original report submitted to CHIRP was: Post CAP 1145 [Safety Review Of Offshore Public Transport

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NTSB Report on 2013 S-76A++ Tail Rotor Blade Loss

Accidents & Incidents, Helicopters, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Safety Management

NTSB Report on 2013 S-76A++ Tail Rotor Blade Loss The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has reported on a fatal Sikorsky S-76A++ accident to a Gulf Of Mexico offshore helicopter during a post-maintenance check flight of avionics systems.  The accident occurred on 15 March 2013 to N574EH, operated by Era Helicopters LLC.  The pilot and

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Cessna 208B Caravan Ditching Video, Molokai, Hawaii, 2013

Accidents & Incidents, Fixed Wing, Maintenance / Continuing Airworthiness / CAMOs, Offshore, Safety Management, Survivability / Ditching

Cessna 208B Caravan Ditching Video, Molokai, Hawaii, 2013 We have previously covered the graphic ditching of Sikorsky S-76C 9M-STE (MSN 760398) of MHS Aviation in the South China Sea on 12 December 2013, and a passenger video of the ditching and rescue. Coincidentally, the day before (but in practice a couple of hours later due to the time difference), another ditching occurred, this

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UK CAA CAP1145: Update on North Sea Helicopter Safety (CAP1243)

Accidents & Incidents, Design & Certification, Helicopters, Human Factors / Performance, HUMS / VHM / UMS / IVHM, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Regulation, Safety Culture, Safety Management, Survivability / Ditching

UK CAA CAP1145: Update on North Sea Helicopter Safety (CAP1243) Not long after the fatal loss of Eurocopter AS332L2 G-WNSB 1.5 nm west of Sumburgh Airport, Shetland Islands on 23 August 2013 with 4 fatalities (AAIB Special Bulletin), the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) launched an rapid review on offshore helicopter safety. CAP1145 This CAA Review resulted in the CAP1145 report

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The ‘Automation Problem’ – A Discussion

Accidents & Incidents, Design & Certification, Fixed Wing, Helicopters, Human Factors / Performance, Regulation, Safety Management

The ‘Automation Problem’ – A Discussion Automation, or perhaps more correctly the use of automated systems, has become a hot topic in the aviation industry, particularly since the issue of the accident report into the loss of AF447 (issued in July 2012).  We review one analysis of the underlying cause and discuss a warning about an emerging

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Aerossurance Joins the British Helicopter Association

Helicopters, News

Aerossurance Joins the British Helicopter Association Aerossurance is pleased to have been accepted as a member of the British Helicopter Association by the BHA Council. The BHA is the non-profit trade organisation that represents the UK’s civil helicopter industry to the Civil Aviation Authority, government departments and international bodies. Its main aim it is to: …promote

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Dramatic Malaysian S-76C 2013 Ditching Video

Accidents & Incidents, Crises / Emergency Response / SAR, Helicopters, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Safety Management, Survivability / Ditching

Dramatic Malaysian S-76C 2013 Ditching Video Dramatic passenger-shot video footage of a helicopter ditching and rescue off Malaysia has emerged: The Sikorsky S-76C 9M-STE (MSN 760398) of MHS Aviation, chartered by Malaysian oil and gas company Petronas, was on approach to a 3D seismic ship in the South China Sea on 12 December 2013. The 105m long, 9800GRT vessel

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New Helicopter Survival Suits in Canada

Crises / Emergency Response / SAR, Helicopters, Logistics, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Safety Management, Survivability / Ditching

New Helicopter Survival Suits in Canada Survitec Group design engineer Alice Cannon presented to SAFE Europe symposium in Bristol in March 2014 on the company’s development of a new helicopter passenger survival suit for use in Canada.  In November 2014, Gaelle Halliday of oil company Husky Energy presented more information at the first safety conference of the Canada-Newfoundland

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When Habits Kill – Canadian MD500 Accident

Accidents & Incidents, Helicopters, Human Factors / Performance, Maintenance / Continuing Airworthiness / CAMOs, Mining / Resource Sector, Safety Management

When Habits Kill – Canadian Hughes 500 Helicopter Accident Establishing habits can be effective ways to achieve safe outcomes, by sub-consciously completing routine actions.  Examples include automatically fastening harnesses and seat belts or routinely scanning for other traffic. However, sometimes habits can be dangerous, for example when circumstances or equipment change. Just such a case occurred in Canada to

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EASA & FAA HUMS / VHM Developments

Accidents & Incidents, Design & Certification, Helicopters, HUMS / VHM / UMS / IVHM, Maintenance / Continuing Airworthiness / CAMOs, Military / Defence, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Regulation, Safety Management

EASA & FAA HUMS / VHM Developments More information has emerged on European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Health and Usage Monitoring Systems (HUMS) / Vibration Health Monitoring (VHM) initiatives. EASA HUMS / VHM Research There was more detail on HUMS/VHM research that Aerossurance has previously reported on when Cranfield University’s Matt Greaves presented the

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The Power of Safety Leadership: Paul O’Neill, Safety and Alcoa

Business Aviation, Fixed Wing, Helicopters, Human Factors / Performance, Military / Defence, Mining / Resource Sector, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Safety Culture, Safety Management

The Power of Safety Leadership: Paul O’Neill, Safety and Alcoa In his book The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do, and How to Change, Charles Duhigg, described the reaction to Paul O’Neill’s first presentation as the new CEO of the Aluminum Company of America (Alcoa) in 1987: A few minutes before noon, the new

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NTSB Report on Bizarre 2012 US S-76B Ditching

Accidents & Incidents, Airfields / Heliports / Helidecks, Business Aviation, Helicopters, Human Factors / Performance, Maintenance / Continuing Airworthiness / CAMOs, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Safety Culture, Safety Management, Survivability / Ditching

An overweight helicopter, flown with a known defect, ditched during a poorly executed approach to a GOM drilling rig, then water taxying was attempted…

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First A350XWB Delivered to Qatar Airways

Design & Certification, Fixed Wing, News

First A350XWB Delivered to Qatar Airways Launch customer Qatar Airways has taken delivery of the first Airbus A350XWB, an A350-900, A7-ALA (MSN06), in Toulouse.   The A350XWB family features three versions: A350-800, A350-900 and A350-1000. In a typical two-class configuration, the A350-800 will accommodate 276 passengers, while the A350-900 and the A350-1000 will seat 315 and

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EC175 / H175 Enters Service with NHV

Design & Certification, Helicopters, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy

EC175 (now H175) Enters Service with NHV Following the handover of the first two 7.5t, 16 passenger Airbus Helicopters EC175s to Belgian operator NHV on 11 December 2014, the type entered service just days later on contract to German oil and gas company Wintershall.  The aircraft are on the Dutch register and based at Den Helder in the Netherlands (the

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