Associated Press
Crews recover final two victims from downed helicopter
3/30/04 - HOUSTON
— The bodies of the final two missing passengers aboard a helicopter that vanished into the Gulf of Mexico with 10 people aboard have been recovered, the company that chartered the flight said Tuesday.
Jason Petitjean, 34, of Rayne, La., and Jeff Langley, 42, of Kountze, Texas, were recovered late Monday night from the Gulf's floor. Both were contractors for Unocal, an El Segundo, Calif.-based oil exploration and production company, when the helicopter disappeared on its way to a drilling ship in the Gulf.
"It's a sad relief would be the way to put it," said Unocal spokeswoman Christine LeLaurin. "The families have a chance to reach some closure. Everyone worked very hard to do their best in this recovery operation. We wished it would have had some different results."
The question now turns to what brought down the Sikorsky S-76A owned by Alaska-based Era Aviation Inc.
National Transportation Safety Board spokeswoman Lorenda Ward said the agency should have retrieved most of the wreckage needed to complete its investigation by Tuesday.
The helicopter took off from an airfield in Galveston and was headed to a drill ship working near South Padre Island. The aircraft was 90 miles south of Galveston when the pilot made his last radio contact.
Remains of four people and a life vest were found a day later floating in the Gulf. Another four bodies were located Friday on the sea's floor among the wreckage but couldn't be recovered until Saturday morning. Most of the wreckage was found about 70 miles south of Galveston.
I'm sure the families and friends of all those who lost their lives are in our thoughts and prayers.
Heliport