EC135 HEMS accident in Norway
Media report that a EC135 helicopter from Norwegian Air Ambulance hit a powerline during landing at a car accident site just nortwest of Oslo. So far it is said that two crewmwbers were fatally injured, one was transported to hospital.
|
Not good :-(
|
Is this the same unit we all argued about recently
|
Just watched the video from last year, could be the very same aircraft.
Very sad :-( |
Is this the same aircraft we all argued about recently that put the skids on a fence to drop the crew off? skadi |
Apologies on my grammar, by same helicopter I meant unit
|
NLA are a great organisation. Condolences to the crew and families of the lost and injured who were lost or injured doing what they could for the sake of others.
Landing on a fence has nought to do with hitting power lines IMHO, and like many of you, I have been around enough to know that power lines are absolute killers..... Killers of all kinds of operators including the conservative and the smart. NLA crews, know that many of us share your grief and are thinking of you. |
I was one who supported them on that thread!
|
Where exactly did I say they crashed because they landed on a fence? I do this for a living and know the risks. All I asked was if it was the same unit
|
Two fatalities confirmed
It is confirmed by the operator that of the three crewmembers, two were fatalities. One crewmember is said to be in hospital with serious injuries. The patient that they came to assist is reported to have been taken by ground transport and he was also seriously injured (from the preceding car accident).
This is the first fatal HEMS accident in Norway since 1996. |
Jay. Yes, I agree that you did back them in that thread.....which made your posts hard for me to understand. Your posts, intentionally or not, infer that you feel there is a connection, and it is that inference I reacted to.
You have confirmed for me in your subsequent posts that you do not connect the fence landing and the power line strike, so I will remove parts of my post. I suggest you could consider a reword of yours to remove the ambiguity? |
There is a short video clip a bit down on the right of this page that shows a second helicopter (EC145) coming in to land after the accident happened. It might give an indication of the landing conditions. The crash site is in the lower right of the picture.
The article by the way reports that the crew was very experienced. |
Agreed, done.
Is it the same unit? |
|
Norsk Luftambulanse (NLA) has 10 EC135 P2+ plus one BK117 C2 flying air ambulance missions in Norway. The missions are flown from eight bases in the southern part of Norway (the northern most base is Trondheim), and most probably the crashed EC135 flew in from the Lørenskog base 18 km/11 miles to the east of Oslo city centre. The crash site is 25 km/16 miles along the E16 (Sollihøgda).
https://maps.google.no/?ll=59.992333...05284&t=m&z=18 |
Very sad news.....reminds us all of the dangers Wires present to Helicopters.....particularly to EMS Crews who do Accident Scene flights.
No matter how vigilant you are....Wires can be very hard to see. Safety is enhanced when the LZ personnel are very well trained in procedures that assure the Pilot is notified of all visible hazards especially Wires that might not be readily noticed by the Air Crew. Small wires with Poles hidden in the tree lines are the worst for that probably. We tend to pick up the Poles/Towers/Masts first then the wires after that. Condolences to the family and friends of those involved. |
Pilot and doctor are confirmed deceased. Paramedic in critical condition.
Very tragic... Bjørn (52) og Anders (38) omkom i helikopterulykken - VG Nett om Luftfart |
Truly a sad accident and my deepest condolences go out to those affected. NLA does a very important job as a not-for-profit-foundation it is contracted by the Norwegian government to supply air medical services to a majority of the Norwegian mainland.
That being said the video posted above by GenuineHoverBug scare me as it appears that the second helicopter coming in also would have hit the power cables had they still been in place. Google StreetView: http://i.imgur.com/iyykyJC.png Video snapshot: http://i.imgur.com/MRTuG61.png |
Yet another bad start to the New Year
Condolences to all involved. Looking at the video of the scence wires are visible then disappear in the whiteout as the 145 comes into land, I'm no expert but white outs and wires can't be a happy combination.
Again my thoughts are with all involved. |
RIP guys :(
This aerial view shows the power lines, and location of a/c. http://www.trakkemaskin.no/pics/uplo...nnfoto_538.jpg http://www.nrk.no/drfront/resources/...968|105045.jpg |
From the last 2 pictures, streetlights looks to be installed between the first and 2nd picture was taken. They seem to ''stand out'' more, and I will not be surprised if not the pilot's main focus was to clear that, preparing for a low-vis snowy landing causing him to miss the higher span. The poles for that span looks also like they are almost hidden against the trees.
Very sad regardless of reason. Condolences to the families, colleagues and all involved. |
|
Video of the AIBN lifting the a/c onto transport: dagbladet.no
|
Does the rotorhead not appear to "wobble" on the way down? |
M609
No disrespect to you,but, having lost close friends in crashes, I find that a very harrowing video and won't be watching it again.
Again thoughts with all friends, families and colleagues |
That's pretty bad.
As an outsider, it would seem logical to me that those calling in air support from the ground should try (note try) and establish a safe landing area and advise back via the controller of obstacles/ hazards like this? Does this happen in the UK? |
The helicopter is often first on scene in rural areas
|
Latest information indicates that the air ambulance service has six channels for radio communication and one mobile phone onboard. Police have also stated that they tried to warn the incoming helicopter about the wires, but no response was given from the helicopter.
Further, it has been informed that preliminary checks have confirmed the most current version of map system used onboard these helicopters have the power lines in question indicated. However, it still remains to be confirmed if this also was the case for the map version loaded onto the downed helicopter. |
Pretty sad all around that people died on their way to help others.
|
The pilot was a highly skilled veteran with just over 20 years of flying for the NLA. Before that he was an airforce pilot in the 771 squadron.
It just goes to show just how dangerous wires are, when they even knock out such a skilled and experienced pilot. My thoughts and condolances goes to the families of the two deceased men. I hope the paramedic turns out just fine. |
try to warn
You are pretty lucky, when you recieve information about obstacles from the landing site. Most of the time there are police and rescueteams, who not even think about an information for the helicoptercrew:ugh:.
By the way, It´s always a miracle, when we loose a "highly skilled veteran". I have to remember, that you won´t find a greenhorn on an HEMS mission. Normally, you will see the black cables in front of the white background. Except, you´ll do a very steep approach and you fix a reference point in the front of you to avoid a "white out". In this case, the wires are exactly under the helicopter and for all crew members "invisible". Very sad... |
One man ops. Why!
Time for a change.
When I first saw this tragic news I recall all my fellow pilots that are no more due to money. Is it not time for two pilots in HEMS ? I hear them overhead here on the westcoast on the most hidious of snowy nights, low level. And I think :that is what I wanted to do , before someone gave me a first-officer and a twin, to warn me off,,,. Off,,,anything,,.! While he gets experiance,,,! Take as many details as You want, heli-ops will never get safer untill you get a First officer. Get the Government contractor to pay, or We shall pay. I am tired of funeralls. Yours Sincerely Capt B |
Originally Posted by outofoffice
(Post 8265349)
Latest information indicates that the air ambulance service has six channels for radio communication and one mobile phone onboard. Police have also stated that they tried to warn the incoming helicopter about the wires, but no response was given from the helicopter.
... ... Huge respect for these guys. En trist dag. Has the injured paramedic been named? |
Preliminary information from the AIB-Norway
A brief preliminary report was just published.
It is i Norwegian, but with two pictures. One of them showing that one of the wires got wound around the mast and severed the pitch-links. |
Has the injured paramedic been named? Sondre Bjartland www.vg.no http://static.vg.no/uploaded/image/2...ed_ramme_1.jpg Pitch links..... http://gfx.dagbladet.no/labrador/313...ctive/978x.jpg |
Was the aircraft equipped with a Wire Strike Safety System (Wire Cutter)?
Looking at the Video's.....it would question if it would have helped due to the very slow speed the aircraft was moving while doing the slow cautious approach the Pilot seemed to be making. |
It was equipped with a WSPS, it could be seen on the video of the salvage, the upper part was red.
Photo: LN-OON (CN: 1033) Norsk Luftambulanse Eurocopter EC 135P2+ by Stig Rokkones - JetPhotos.Net skadi |
That makes this all the more tragic.
The wire(s) were quite small....and should not have been that hard to cut....but very hard to see. |
I saw a Bell 206 with WSPS hit a wire and it ended up with severed pitch change rods as well. They reckoned that the wire went through a 1 inch gap between the top of the cutter and the rotor disc.
|
Speaking of single pilot ops..
The irony in this is that once you got big enough ships, you are required to have dual crew, even if the operations are not nearly as hazardous as EMS flying can be, escpesially in mountainious countries. If there are any operations that should have two pilots, its such one as this. Clearly, it works well most of the time (2004 was the last accident they had, wihtout fatalities, 1996 with fatalities). But the question they should ask them self is: Is it really worth the money saved on single pilot ops when we have loss of lives that could have been avoided? |
All times are GMT. The time now is 23:52. |
Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.