North Sea heli ditching: Oct 2012
 

BBC News - 'Helicopter ditches in North Sea'

(Maybe more suited to Rotorheads - mods, over to you).

Lifeboats have been launched after reports a helicopter has ditched in the North Sea.

It is believed the incident is about 20 miles south of Sumburgh Head in Shetland.
It is not yet known if there are any casualties.


An RNLI spokesperson told BBC Scotland the Kirkwall, Aith and Lerwick lifeboats were launched after being alerted by Shetland Coastguard.


It is believed to involve a CHC helicopter.

North Sea heli ditched
 

BBC News reporting that a helicopter has ditched 20 miles south of Sumburgh....

Operator is reported to be CHC.

Fingers crossed crew and pax are safe.

Just had a news alert for this. Sky are saying that SAR are "attempting to rescue 19 people from the sea." Fingers crossed!

Anyone know which rig it was going to/from?

Fingers crossed for a speedy and safe return to dry land.

Afraid not however RNLI have confirmed that they have recovered all 19 POB from a raft. Great news.

Helicopter ditching in the North Sea
 

BBC reporting this:
BBC News - Lifeboats launched after helicopter ditches in North Sea

Any news on type?

Last update at 1625

BBC News - Lifeboats launched after helicopter ditches in North Sea

CHC Helicopter confirmed one of its aircraft was involved but the exact details of the incident were not yet known.


It is not yet known if there are any casualties.

All 19 safely recovered according to the BBC.

Sky News reporting that it was a soft controlled landing in the sea.(what ever that means!)

Sky saying all safe thankfully.

North Sea Rescue As Helicopter Ditches

thank god everyone is Ok,,,,,,,

Possibly a EC225, but not sure how accurate my source is.
I hear all pax & crew recovered ok.

Nothing to do with crew skills then?

STV reports it as en route from Aberdeen to the West Phoenix drilling rig.
NS

Looks like it was Helibus 24T, left Aberdeen at 1415
NS

Beeb reports:

From Yahoo.

Good job! (is too short a message to post, so bolstered with superfluous verbiage - Happy now pprune?)

Good report just now on BBC Scotland news. helicopter still afloat and visible from Fair Isle.....Lifeboat standing by. all 19 SOB safe and well. :cool:

Pleased all safe; now we can all sit back and wait for that well known "aviation expert" Jim (no mates) Ferguson to tell us what happened in his usual inimitable style.:E

SND

bbc news has the story on the web site

BBC News - North Sea helicopter ditching: 'All safe'

interesting analysis :rolleyes:

fats

Now everyone is ok, I can be sarcastic. I suppose we are going to blame Bond for this? Or are rig workers going to refuse to fly on CHC helis now?

BBC Scotland news did manage to refer to it as a CHC Bond Super Puma....:ugh:

Some were transferred by a Jigsaw aircraft, apparently.

The funniest part of an AAIB interview I had a long time ago was when one of the investigators said "We won't worry too much about what you tell us, we'll just read what that t**t jim Ferguson says and write the report from that!"

One day the media will properly read these pages and get the inside industry opinion of JF.

SND

What yardstick do you measure that by?

Do you mean the petty sniping around posts 5-8? ;)

On the topic, glad to see that the ditch evolution was successful, in terms of getting the bird down safely, and the people out safely.

:ok:

24T
 

7 survivors landed at Sumburgh by Rescue Bond 2.

CHC Press Release.

STATEMENT: CONTROLLED DITCHING OFF OF SHETLAND, U.K.



'Big' team on the case by the look of it.
Emergency Response | The BIG Partnership | PR & Digital Marketing

Well done to the CHC crew it is never easy to ditch but with good crew training the decision becomes easier. Glad everybody is fine and well.:ok:

I did find it interesting to ditch a 365N2 into the hotel swimming pool - even the sunshades moved under the effect of the downwash - damn good these French Simulators:E

HF

SAR Aircraft MMSI 111232502 (OC?)

AIS track shows them almost stationary at 61.6N 1.3E at 1418 then 140kn to the hospital helipad in Aberdeen at 1646. Timings UTC.

Be interesting to see if this is another gearbox issue....

REF:- Danish chemical tanker Nord Nightingale rescued all 19 pob using her rescue boat, all then transferred to RAF Rescue 137 and flown to Kirkwall.

Ref Little Clouds statement!

Rescue 137 was asked to pickup 12 survivors from NN's bridge wing and proceed to KWL(Kirkwall)!
Rescue Bond2 recovered the remainder (7) and took them to Sumburgh due to prevailing weather at Kirkwall. Fact.... Landing at Sumburgh at 1655z.

Beep beep

I did find it interesting to ditch a 365N2 into the hotel swimming pool - even the sunshades moved under the effect of the downwash - damn good these French Simulators:E

HF[/QUOTE]

They better be damn good to prepare the crews of the not so damn good helicopters for ditching. It appears that the need to ditch this type of helicopter has increased slightly in the recent past.

Here's a report that may add a little more info for you ...

Shetland News | Rescued passengers praise chopper crew [5720]

Very experienced crew it would appear. And sounded incredibly calm and professional on the radio. Well done! :ok: