Helicopter Crash- Mitchell, Australia

[belly tank]

Just heard on the news that a machine went down in Mitchell on a property, unfortunaltely the 2 persons on board didnt make it......R.I.P

Anyone heard any more?

Just found this,


Two dead in helicopter crash
September 9, 2004

TWO people are believed to have died in a helicopter crash on a property in Queensland\'s south-west.

A police spokeswoman said the privately owned chopper was thought to have been carrying a male pilot and a passenger.

The helicopter had taken off yesterday for a flight around the property near Mitchell and was due back at 6.30pm.

But it failed to return.

Police found its wreckage this morning around 1.5 km from the property\'s airstrip.

[bcp]

I just heard about a chopper crash this morning. If it is the same one, which I presume it is, the pilot was Sydney bloke and used to work for an airline as a FO and had a chopper of his own.

[imabell]

the passenger was the property owner and the largest private property owner in australia including the huge wave hill cattle station in the territory. brian oxenford.

the pilot was justin wallace. a qantas or ex qantas pilot.

the helicopter was a robinson r44 with thirty hours on the clock and from initial reports the weather was on the deck out at mitchell.

[Helibloke]

Justin Wallace was an EX Ansett A320 F/O , He also spent alot of time working in the corporate aviation scene.
Condolences to the families, friends and colleagues of the two Killed in this accident.

[Time Out]

Abstract: On 8 September 2004, the owner/pilot of a Robinson Helicopter Company R44 Raven II helicopter, registered VH-JWX, conducted a private flight under the visual flight rules (VFR) from Coffs Harbour, NSW to Eurella Station, Qld. The flight included a landing at Roma, Qld where the pilot refuelled the helicopter with 180 L of Avgas from the bulk underground fuel storage supply. The pilot then continued to Eurella Station, located approximately 54 km west of Roma, arriving at 1705 Eastern Standard Time. The pilot shut down the engine and the property owner boarded the helicopter for a pre-arranged local flight. The pilot made several attempts to start the engine, during which it backfired a few times. Once started, the engine seemed to function normally.

Factual Information: too much to put here plus picture, map etc. - see http://www.atsb.gov.au/publications/investigation_reports/2004/AAIR/aair200403351.aspx

Analysis: The investigation found that there was no evidence of a pre-existing defect in the helicopter that may have contributed to the occurrence, nor was there any evidence of a medical condition that could have affected the pilot’s ability to control the helicopter. Consequently, the investigation concluded that in the prevailing environmental conditions, the accident was consistent with pilot spatial disorientation. This analysis examines the development of the occurrence and highlights a significant risk associated with night VFR operations.
The pilot departed for Eurella homestead 6 minutes after civil twilight in moonless, overcast, and probably showery conditions that were likely to restrict visibility to less than the required 5 km. Except for the homestead lights, the ground lighting or celestial illumination required by the Aircraft Flight Manual was not available. Although the pilot had flown at night on two recent occasions (23 and 26 August 2004), those flights did not fully satisfy the night VFR recency requirements and were probably over a well lit area. Given the pilot’s limited recent and overall helicopter night flying experience, and the forecast weather conditions, it is unlikely that the pilot planned to conduct the return flight at night. The pilot had probably used the helicopter to move cattle and that task may have taken longer than expected. The proximity of the homestead, the local knowledge of his passenger, the night VFR capability of the aircraft and access to GPS information may have influenced the pilot to attempt the return flight.
The track information recovered from the hand-held GPS showed manoeuvring after 1830 that suggests that the pilot, probably using GPS information, made several attempts to track to the homestead, but was unable to do so. It is likely that during the manoeuvring the pilot was at a low altitude, attempting to maintain visual contact with surface features, possibly with the assistance of the landing lights. Such visual contact would have enabled control of the helicopter and clearance from terrain. In the absence of a consistently discernable horizon, any visual contact with the homestead lights would not have enabled the pilot to determine the helicopter’s attitude. Prior to the impact, the pilot may have lost visual contact with the surface due to cloud and/or rain and become spatially disorientated.
The pilot may have attempted to control the helicopter by reference to the flight instruments. However, he had not logged any instrument flight time in a helicopter and had not been exposed to significant night-flight away from metropolitan areas. The relative instability of the helicopter and the different operating environment meant that the pilot’s considerable aeroplane night and instrument flight experience was not directly transferable to night VFR helicopter operations. Consequently, spatial disorientation could have developed rapidly.
Flying the helicopter at a low altitude at night with cloud and/or showers in an area with little lighting was a very demanding task with little margin for error. However, once the helicopter became airborne after civil twilight, there were few options available to the pilot. The pilot’s lack of helicopter instrument flight experience would probably have precluded consideration of climbing to the lowest safe altitude and tracking to an aerodrome with an instrument approach. Given that the adverse weather was widespread, diversion to another location while maintaining external visual reference was also an unlikely option.
A landing at a location other than the homestead was an option. It is possible that the accident occurred when the pilot became spatially disorientated in the adverse conditions while attempting to land the helicopter. However, it is also possible that, unable to communicate with the homestead, the pilot avoided an out-landing due to the consequent difficulty in reaching the homestead without transport.
Illumination of the clutch light as indicated by the stretched filament may have resulted from clutch operation during flight or from disruption during the impact. If the clutch light had illuminated during flight it may have distracted the pilot and contibuted to spatial disorientation.
As a result of the separated ELT antenna cable, the search and rescue effort was significantly affected. However, in this case, the nature of the impact and the extent of injury to the occupants indicated that the search and rescue effort would not have influenced their survivability.
The circumstances of this occurrence highlight the risk of spatial disorientation during night VFR operations and reinforce the significance of the cautions included in the helicopter manufacturer’s safety notices SN-18 and SN-26.
SIGNIFICANT FACTOR
The pilot departed after civil twilight in conditions where a natural horizon was probably not discernible and consistent visual reference to surface features was not likely.
SAFETY ACTION
Manufacturer
On 17 November 2004, the helicopter manufacturer advised that it had contacted the emergency locator transmitter (ELT) manufacturer concerning the ELT antenna coaxial cable connectors. The ELT manufacturer had undertaken to test coaxial cable connectors with a 30 lb. tension load. Connectors held in stock by the helicopter manufacturer would also be tested. The helicopter manufacturer advised that it was converting to the new 406 MHz capable ELTs. The antenna connector for the new installation would be crimped by the helicopter manufacturer. The style of crimping used by the helicopter manufacturer has been tested and could typically withstand in excess of 100 lb tension. The helicopter manufacturer believed that those actions would prevent failures of the type that occurred to the ELT installation in the occurrence helicopter.