From todays The Daily Telegraph on line
Another crash for NSW Ambulance rescue chopper
THE state's problem-prone ambulance helicopter service has hit another snag, with one of its choppers involved in an accident yesterday.
The crash comes after another malfunction just last month, which took two helicopters out of action in order to fix the problem, and the fleet is now down one chopper until a replacement is found after the latest incident.
Two pilots who were conducting ground training exercises about 9.30am yesterday encountered engine problems and landed badly, causing serious damage.
"The helicopter landed too hard and that was what damaged it. It was a complete write-off," a source said.
A spokeswoman for NSW Ambulance confirmed the incident.
"Whilst hovering one to 2m off the ground the aircraft began to vibrate and the pilot in command immediately set the aircraft down," she said.
"Whilst setting the aircraft down, the tail rotor and skids were damaged. No injuries were sustained and the extent of the damage to the aircraft is being assessed by engineers."
The $270 million fleet of helicopters has been plagued by problems since the State Government snubbed the long-serving Westpac Lifesaver and NRMA CareFlight services for Canadian company CHC.
Just last month one of the CHC helicopters made an emergency landing at St Albans when a warning light came on and another helicopter was forced out to pick up the patient.
In August last year The Daily Telegraph revealed staff cuts had left the service unable to properly respond to emergencies.
Opposition health spokeswoman Jillian Skinner called for a full investigation to determine the extent of the issues within the fleet.
"This foreign helicopter service has been plagued with problems ever since the Iemma Government dumped the Careflight and surf lifesaver community helicopters," she said.
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