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UK CAA CAP1145 North Sea Helicopter Safety Two Years On

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 North Sea Helicopter Safety Two Years On Not long after the fatal loss of Eurocopter AS332L2 G-WNSB 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. That CAA Review resulted in the CAP1145 report (‘Safety review of […]

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Troublesome Tiedowns

Accidents & Incidents, Airfields / Heliports / Helidecks, Helicopters, Human Factors / Performance, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Safety Management

Troublesome Tiedowns The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has recently reported on two cases in October 2015 were helicopters offshore suffered accidents after the tie-downs were not fully removed: Fish Spotting Helicopter, Pacific Ocean (B206, N1060C) On 21 October 2015 Bell 206B N1060C was being prepared for take-off from the 74m Fishing Vessel Majestic Sun off Christmas Island,

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Leonardo Strives For Greater Gearbox Loss of Lube Capability

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

Finmeccanica Strives For Greater Gearbox Loss of Lube Capability Finmeccanica Helicopters (the recently rebranded AgustaWestland (UPDATE: and now Leonardo) is working to enhance the durability of helicopter Main Gear Boxes (MGBs) after a loss of lubrication. The company’s Marco Tamborini presented their approach at the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) 9th Rotorcraft Symposium held in Cologne in December

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CAP1145 Helicopter Water Impact Survivability Statistics – A Critique

Accidents & Incidents, Helicopters, Human Factors / Performance, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Regulation, Safety Management, Survivability / Ditching

CAP1145 Helicopter Water Impact Survivability Statistics – A Critique Eurocopter AS332L2 G-WNSB impacted the sea 1.5 nm west of Sumburgh Airport, Shetland Islands on 23 August 2013 (see the last AAIB Special Bulletin) with the loss of 4 lives. https://youtu.be/C_3xlunGUk0 Within weeks the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) ordered a hurried safety review. This resulted in the CAP1145 report (‘Safety review of offshore public transport

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HUMS Vibration Health Monitoring Success

Accidents & Incidents, Helicopters, HUMS / VHM / UMS / IVHM, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Safety Management

HUMS Vibration Health Monitoring Success Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) has published a Service Difficulty Report (SDR), dated 1 November 2015, that highlights a Health & Usage Monitoring System (HUMS) Vibration Health Monitoring (VHM) success. During investigation of a HUMS vibration alert, the main rotor head of an Airbus Helicopters EC225/H225 offshore helicopter was examined and wear was identified beyond the limits

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CSB: ‘Multiple Safety Deficiencies’ Led to ExxonMobil Refinery Explosion

Accidents & Incidents, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Safety Culture, Safety Management

CSB: ‘Multiple Safety Deficiencies’ Led to ExxonMobil Refinery Explosion The US Chemical Safety Board (CSB) report that they have “uncovered multiple process safety management deficiencies” that led to the 18 February 2015, explosion at the ExxonMobil Torrance refinery, California and an associated serious near miss. The CSB explain: …two workers were injured when an explosion occurred in the

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Aerossurance Marks RAeS 150th Anniversary by Sponsoring Rotorcraft Automation Conference

Design & Certification, Helicopters, Human Factors / Performance, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Regulation, Resilience, Safety Management

Aerossurance Marks RAeS 150th Anniversary by Sponsoring Rotorcraft Automation Conference The Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS) was founded on 12 January 1866, so is today celebrating its 150th anniversary (or sesquicentennial). To mark this significant milestone Aerossurance is pleased to be sponsoring the Society’s 2016 Rotorcraft Conference. This conference, to be held 6-7 July 2016 at the

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Helicopter HUMS Maintenance Credit: New Initiatives

Helicopters, HUMS / VHM / UMS / IVHM, Military / Defence, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Regulation

Helicopter HUMS Maintenance Credit: New Initiatives Health and Usage Monitoring Systems (HUMS) were first introduced 25 years ago as a safety enhancement for offshore helicopters in the UK and Norway.  Even in the early days of HUMS the prize of ‘maintenance credits’ was envisaged: i.e. using the HUMS data to reduce invasive physical inspections and disassembly (with

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Our Top 20 Articles of 2015

Accidents & Incidents, Business Aviation, Crises / Emergency Response / SAR, Design & Certification, Fixed Wing, Helicopters, Human Factors / Performance, Maintenance / Continuing Airworthiness / CAMOs, Military / Defence, News, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Regulation, Safety Culture, Safety Management, Special Mission Aircraft, Survivability / Ditching

Aerossurance: Our Top 20 Articles of 2015 As we start the new year we look back on the 20 articles that proved most popular with our readers in 2015.  In reverse order: Number 20: Building St Helena Airport – An Industrial Scale ‘Grand Design’ This started with the building of the first airport on the volcanic

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UK BOSIET/FOET Cat-A CA-EBS HUET Update

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

UK BOSIET/FOET Cat-A CA-EBS HUET Update Category A Compressed Air Emergency Breathing Systems (CA-EBS) were introduced for helicopter passengers flying offshore over the UK Continental Shelf in September 2014.  This followed the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) North Sea Review, which resulted in the CAP1145 report. Oil and Gas UK, Step Change in Safety, OPITO, the International Association of Drilling Contractors

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B1900C PSM+ICR Accident in Pakistan 2010

Accidents & Incidents, Fixed Wing, Human Factors / Performance, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Safety Management

B1900C PSM+ICR Accident in Pakistan 2010 The Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has recently published the report into the loss of a Beechcraft B1900C in 2010. The aircraft, AP-BJD, was being operated by JS Air (as subsidiary of the JS Group) when it crashed on 5 November 2010, killing 21 people.  The accident featured what a

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UK OHSAG Oct 2015 Minutes

Accidents & Incidents, Airfields / Heliports / Helidecks, Crises / Emergency Response / SAR, Helicopters, Human Factors / Performance, HUMS / VHM / UMS / IVHM, Logistics, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Regulation, Resilience, Safety Management, Survivability / Ditching

UK Offshore Helicopter Safety Action Group (OHSAG) October 2015 Minutes The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has just published the minutes of the 16 October 2015 meeting of the Offshore Helicopter Safety Action Group (OHSAG).  This is the third and last of the year (compared to six in 2014), postponed from July 2015. The OHSAG was formed as a result of the ‘Civil

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So You Think The GOM is Non-Hostile?

Accidents & Incidents, Helicopters, Human Factors / Performance, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Safety Management, Survivability / Ditching

So You Think The Gulf of Mexico (GOM) is Non-Hostile? The Gulf of Mexico (GOM), off the coast of Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas in particular, remains a busy area for offshore helicopter operations with over 2 million passengers carried and nearly 300,000 flying hours last year (see our article: Helicopter Ops and Safety – Gulf Of

So You Think The GOM is Non-Hostile? Read Post »

Back to the Future: Error Management

Accidents & Incidents, Air Traffic Management / Airspace, Airfields / Heliports / Helidecks, Business Aviation, Crises / Emergency Response / SAR, Design & Certification, Fixed Wing, Helicopters, Human Factors / Performance, HUMS / VHM / UMS / IVHM, Logistics, Maintenance / Continuing Airworthiness / CAMOs, Military / Defence, Mining / Resource Sector, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Resilience, Safety Culture, Safety Management

We look at some of the problems of error management and ask if we are still making the error management mistakes James Reason warned of in 1997 (spoiler: some organisations are). We also look at drift and how some have failed to grasp its more than poor compliance.

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Bell 407 Power Loss GOM Ditching: NTSB

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

Bell 407 Power Loss GOM Ditching: NTSB (RLC B407 N373RL) The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has reported on the ditching of a Bell 407 offshore helicopter in the Gulf Of Mexico (GOM) on 11 November 2014.   The aircraft, N373RL operated by Rotorcraft Leasing Company (RLC), ditched following a partial power loss shortly after take off from an installation

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Bristow Sikorsky S-92A

S-92A Emergency Landing: MGB Oil Checklist Recommendation

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

S-92A Emergency Landing: MGB Oil Checklist Recommendation Earlier this month the Norwegian Accident Investigation Board (AIBN) issued their report into an emergency landing of Sikorsky S-92A LN-ONW, operated by Bristow Norway on 4 October 2013.  The crew almost ditched due to false warnings created by a single tripped circuit breaker. The Incident The S-92A was returning from the

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Norwegian Survival Suits: Suited for Safety

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

Norwegian Survival Suits: Suited for Safety The Norwegian Petroleum Safety Agency (PSA), has published a piece on the history of survival suits in Norway in their latest Dialogue magazine. Amusingly their first illustration highlights a hazard unique to early survival suits that we discussed after the 2014 Oil & Gas UK annual aviation seminar, namely cigarette

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HeliOffshore HUMS Best Practice Guide

HeliOffshore Launch HUMS Best Practice Guide

Helicopters, HUMS / VHM / UMS / IVHM, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Safety Management

HeliOffshore Launch HUMS Best Practice Guide The offshore helicopter safety organisation, HeliOffshore, has today launched a Health & Usage Monitoring System (HUMS) Best Practice Guide to standardise and improve HUMS use worldwide. The main element of helicopter HUMS is Vibration Health Monitoring (VHM), designed to detect developing mechanical failures in safety critical transmission and rotor systems components.

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New NHV Heliport Under Construction in Aberdeen

Airfields / Heliports / Helidecks, Helicopters, Logistics, News, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy

New NHV Heliport Under Construction in Aberdeen At a time of low oil price it might be surprising to hear that a new heliport is being constructed at Aberdeen Airport in Scotland, but that is what is currently happening. Belgian operator NHV, the launch customer for the EC175 (now H175), has previously been reported to have been keen to establish

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EC155 of a European Operator

CHIRP Critical of an Oil Company’s Commercial Practices

Helicopters, Human Factors / Performance, Logistics, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Regulation, Safety Culture, Safety Management

CHIRP Critical of an Oil Company’s Commercial Practices The CHIRP Charitable Trust, who run the UK’s Confidential Human Factors Incident Reporting Programme (CHIRP), has highlighted two “of the many” reports received relating to an oil company changing its North Sea helicopter operator for the second time in three years. CHIRP do not name the oil company.

CHIRP Critical of an Oil Company’s Commercial Practices Read Post »

HeliOffshore Progress One Year On

Helicopters, Human Factors / Performance, HUMS / VHM / UMS / IVHM, News, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Resilience, Safety Management

HeliOffshore Progress One Year On We first reported on the plan to create HeliOffshore in June 2014.  HeliOffshore was formally launched on 21 October 2014 in London and held its first AGM and conference in Lisbon in May 2015.  When membership was opened up beyond helicopter operators in January 2015, Aerossurance is pleased to have been one

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Moerdijk Explosion: “Failure to Learn”

Accidents & Incidents, Human Factors / Performance, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Safety Culture, Safety Management

Shell Moerdijk Explosion: “Failure to Learn” On 3 June 2014 two major explosions and a fire occurred at a Shell petrochemical plant in Moerdijk, Netherlands. Two employees were injured in the explosions that were heard 20 km away.  Debris was found 800 metres away. The Dutch Safety Board has investigated this incident.  Currently only the investigation summary

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UK CAA Helideck Developments

Airfields / Heliports / Helidecks, Crises / Emergency Response / SAR, Helicopters, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Regulation, Safety Management, Survivability / Ditching

UK CAA Helideck Developments The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) are considering changing how offshore helidecks are approved and assessing the fire-fighting provision on Normally Unattended Installations (NUIs).  The former activity is subject to a public consultation and that latter is being examined by a Offshore Helicopter Safety Action Group (OHSAG) working group. Helideck Qualified

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