Choppers on list ‘without factual cause’

By Guy Williams

A coroner’s findings into a helicopter accident near Queenstown in 2015 has brought the safety of Robinson helicopters back into the spotlight. Longtime operators of Robinsons are pushing back, telling Public Interest Journalism Fund reporter Guy Williams the findings are speculative and the reputation of the United States company continues to be unfairly maligned.

The crash of the Robinson R44 in the Lochy River valley would not have occurred in any other type of helicopter, coroner Alexandra Cunninghame wrote in her findings last month.

The accident killed Queenstown student pilot James Patterson-Gardner (18) — who was at the controls — and experienced Wanaka pilot Stephen Combe.

The aircraft’s mid-air break-up from "mast-bumping" — when a helicopter’s main rotor hub strikes its driveshaft (mast) — has become emblematic of a widespread public perception of Robinsons as flawed helicopters prone to falling out of the sky.

With no evidence of mechanical fault or pilot error, Ms Cunninghame concluded neither caused the accident.

Despite evidence flying conditions were near perfect and winds in the area around the time of the accident were "minimal to light", she determined "on the balance of probabilities" the R44 had encountered an "abrupt change in wind direction or an abrupt gust", leading to mast-bumping and an "almost instantaneous transition from forward flight to catastrophe".

Behind her reasoning was evidence presented by an investigative engineering consultancy, Prosolve Ltd, that the Robinson rotor head design made the company’s helis "dangerously susceptible" to even light turbulence, particularly at higher speeds, and "catastrophic failure".

Alongside a call for Robinson pilots to avoid forecast moderate-to-severe turbulence, and to stay under 70 knots in mountainous terrain, the coroner called for more research into the aircraft’s design, and recommended cockpit video recorders be mandatory for all helicopters in New Zealand.

In late 2016, the Transport Accident Investigation Commission (TAIC) put Robinsons on its watchlist of "pressing concerns", citing the Lochy Valley crash as one of 14 mast-bumping accidents, in which 18 people were killed in in-flight break-ups, in the previous two decades.

The TAIC said a significant proportion of the accidents occurred in "low-G" flight conditions, a state of near-weightlessness caused by turbulence or "large or abrupt" flight control inputs.

It had concerns about the safety of Robinsons in the mountainous terrain and weather conditions common in New Zealand.

That prompted a slew of organisations to ban their staff from flying in Robinsons, including the Department of Conservation and Otago Regional Council.

The Civil Aviation Authority(CAA) responded by tightening up the training regime for Robinson R22 and R44 pilots to bring it up to international best practice.

In the past five years, the rate of Robinson accidents from any cause has fallen by two-thirds, the CAA says.

Since then, one Robinson crash has involved mast-bumping, that of Wanaka pilot Matthew Wallis at Lake Wanaka in 2018, the primary cause attributed to "severe or extreme" turbulence.

The coroner’s findings into the 2015 accident, with their implication that Robinsons are inherently dangerous, have angered longtime operators of the make.

Queenstown aviator Jules Tapper says Robinsons are safe when flown within their limits. Photo: ODT files

In an opinion piece for the Otago Daily Times last month, commercial pilot John Sarginson said they crashed more often than other makes because there were more of them operating than any other, and most pilots did their training and early flying in them.

The coroner had based her findings on evidence from one investigative engineering firm, which after finding no evidence of mechanical fault or pilot error, had speculated about the cause.

"The coroner accepted there was no evidence to show the pilots made a mistake," Mr Sarginson wrote.

"So I can only hope the coroner also accepted there was no evidence to show the pilots did not make a mistake."

Mast-bumping was a "result" in accidents, not the cause, Mr Sarginson told the ODT this week.

He had flown Robinsons for 34 years, and operated a fleet of them doing agricultural work in the southern South Island for seven years in the 2000s without a single accident.

"They’re not bulletproof, but if the pilot stays within their own limits and the aircraft’s, and knows when it’s best to be on the ground, they’re perfectly fine and well-suited to New Zealand.

"All aircraft have quirks that pilots need to be aware of, and know how to respond to."

The TAIC had put Robinsons on its watchlist "without factual cause", and it was time that stance was revisited.

However, it suited the stakeholders in aviation companies operating more powerful helicopters for Robinsons to remain on the watchlist, because they were benefiting from the work that used to be performed by Robinsons, he said.

The CAA, on the other hand, deserved a "pat on the back" for tightening up the Robinson pilot training regime, which had dramatically reduced the accident rate.

Respected Queenstown aviator Jules Tapper said he had flown in most types of aircraft over more than 60 years, and flown his own R22 for the past 27 years.

Queenstown commercial pilot John Sarginson wants Robinsons removed from a safety watchlist. Photo: supplied

"They are a light helicopter just like there are light aircraft, and they have to be flown within the parameters for which they’ve been built."

That included slowing down in turbulence and understanding the "simple" control response to a low-G situation.

Lindis Pass farmer Russell Emmerson has logged 14,000 hours in Robinsons, using them for mustering and other tasks on his vast property for the past 33 years.

The coroner’s findings were based on "pure conjecture", he said.

"We operate in extreme conditions here on many occasions, and we know their limitations.

"If we don’t have to go, we don’t go."

The "bad press" from the watchlist move and the highlighting of every Robinson accident had unfairly tarnished the helicopter maker’s reputation, Mr Emmerson said.

The Robinson company, which has sold more than 13,000 helicopters since it started production in 1979, did not take part in last year’s inquest hearings.

It has consistently maintained pilot input is the cause of crashes, and because its aircraft are flown by more student pilots and non-professional pilots.

An emailed statement from the company said the coroner’s findings were based on "opinions and a flawed analysis by an expert witness lacking expertise in helicopter rotor dynamics".

Improvements in flight training and training material in New Zealand since the 2015 crash had resulted in a significant reduction in accidents.

"Robinson continues to implement design changes to improve safety, such as cockpit video recorders as standard equipment on both R44 and R66 helicopters, and will continue its research and development into low-G flight."

Wreckage from the 2015 accident in the Lochy River valley near Queenstown. Photo: NZ Police

In her report, Ms Cunninghame reiterated the TAIC recommendation that cockpit video recorders be made mandatory in all Robinsons flying in New Zealand.

It is one thing the three veteran pilots broadly agree with her on, Mr Emmerson saying the devices would "overcome all these speculative issues".

In 2020 the CAA approved Eye in the Sky, a video, audio and flight data recorder developed by Mr Patterson-Gardner’s mother, Louisa "Choppy" Patterson, and her Queenstown-based helicopter company Over The Top.

Ministry of Transport economic regulation manager Tom Forster said it was now considering advice to the minister on the mandating of the recorders.

The CAA was also looking at non-regulatory measures to encourage greater voluntary take-up of the devices, Mr Forster said.

"Cockpit cameras not only provide valuable post-crash information to investigators, but can also be used by operators as a safety monitoring and training tool, which can provide additional safety benefits."

In the meantime, the removal of Robinsons from the watchlist appears a distant prospect.

TAIC spokesman Simon Pleasants said they were put on the watchlist out of concern at a "series of findings and recommendations" on accidents over a long time.

Taking them off the watchlist would require a "long period of that harm not happening at all".

However, progress was being made on the three actions the TAIC was seeking, Mr Pleasants said.

The Robinson company was continuing to commission research on its rotor head and driveshaft designs in zero-G flight, pilot training had improved and work was under way in government on getting cockpit video recorders into the helicopter fleet.

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