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Bristow S76 Ditched in Nigeria today Feb 3 2016
A Bristow S76 has gone down near ExxonMobil's Erha. Far too early to speculate on the cause, so please don't. People have been sighted in a liferaft and a rescue operation is ongoing at present.
I wish my best to all involved and hope that everyone on board has got out okay. |
this is no good news for Bristow . But I thank God for no life was lost.
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From the Bristow website
NIGERIA, (February 3, 2016) – Bristow Helicopters (Nigeria) Limited, confirmed today that one of its helicopters, was involved in a water landing near Lagos at about 10.25 a.m. local time on return from an offshore platform. The aircraft, a Sikorsky S-76C++, had departed on a routine crew transfer flight offshore with nine passengers and a crew of two. All persons onboard are accounted for and in the process of being transferred to a nearby installation. The company is in the process of collecting pertinent information and will release more details as soon as it is available. |
Thank goodness it was a water landing and not a ditching. That would have been terrible.:hmm:
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Here we go again...
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here we go again
Another crash for a Bristow S76. Canīt say Iīm surprised though, with all the things that go on here backstage. Luckily everyone's ok this time...
Duncan Moore will be remembered as Bristow's MD with the most number of crashes during his term |
A water landing does not impact on Target Zero but a ditching would.
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Not a lost time incident as technically they are still at work offshore. But seriously, Glad to hear all ok.
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target zero BS
Yes, target zero, that is the only thing that bristow cares about. However it is only really a BS slogan used on their brochures, so they can hand them to clients and hang posters on the wall. Pretty soon they'll start having employee of the month contests like McDonalds.
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tgvbhy15
Agree 100% :D Oh well another contract for Bond to pick up |
Yes, target zero, that is the only thing that bristow cares about A standard threat made to aircrew in one company by an oil company was if you don't do what is asked you will lose the contract because not cutting corners would add expense. |
Bond picking up contracts? Because those guys have never crashed anything...?:ugh:
It'll take more than a new paintjob... still cheap is good in this environment I guess. Great to hear everyone is OK. |
Can you name one company who have never crashed? Ever?
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Kwikenz,
Whats the crash got to do with it, we were talking about target bull****.... |
Seriously.....Never ceases to amaze me that people will crawl out from under their rocks and start slinging **** when they have no idea what they are talking about. This ditching could have been due to a multitude of different possible events, any and all of which are unknown at this time.
Something like this could happen to any of us, any day, for reasons beyond anyones control, i.e. bird strike etc. I'm glad that the pilots managed to make a safe ditching, and that all concerned are alive!!!!! Cheers |
HMM and Megan
Kudos for talking sense. |
I still believe it's too early for frivolous speculations.
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Originally Posted by njorman
(Post 9259365)
I still believe it's too early for frivolous speculations.
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Target Shmero
Well, I am not speculating at all as I fly here in Nigeria for Bristow. I see everyday the sort of sh## that goes on here. Yet nothing, NOTHING is done to fix it. But rest assured that if one of the Target Zero posters at the entrance needs polishing or fixing, it will be done a.s.a.p.
What really amazes me is not that people crawl from under their rock to criticize what they see (most times true, although sometimes exaggerated) but that Bristow management, without knowing all the facts about the S76 ditching, hurried to issue a statement saying that everyone was safe after a "water landing". I'm surprised they did not add the word routine before "water landing". I know for a fact that when this statement was sent to the press, the facts about this ditching were not known. All they knew was where it had happened and that there were no fatalities. |
Added ABC article:
Nigeria's aviation regulatory agency is suspending operation of all Sikorsky model S-76C++ helicopters following two crashes in six months in the West African country, the director general said Thursday. One helicopter crash-landed off an oil rig in the Atlantic Ocean on Wednesday. Nine passengers and two crew members were rescued from the sea, emergency management officials said. Another Sikorsky nose-dived Aug. 10 into a lagoon in Lagos, the commercial capital, killing six of the 12 people on board including the American pilot and Nigerian co-pilot. The U.S.-made aircraft are operated in Nigeria by Bristow, a Houston, Texas-based company that provides air services to offshore oil and gas companies. "The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority has therefore decided to suspend the operation of the Bristow Helicopters Sikorsky S-76C++ type till further notice" pending "a full audit," director general Capt. Muhtar Usman said Thursday. He said the temporary ban from Nigerian airspace took effect Wednesday. Bristow said in a statement that it has complied, calling the order "standard practice" following the "controlled water-landing." But the helicopters were not suspended from service after the August accident. In a preliminary report into that crash published in September, Nigeria's Accident Investigation Bureau said the control pushrod assembly had failed — the tube had separated from the control rod end with the bearing and the jamnut was loose. It described a fault that could lead to loss of control of the aircraft and recommended that Sikorsky "should consider a redesign of the affected control pushrod." The Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. headquartered in Stratford, Connecticut, did not immediately respond to AP requests for comment. Bristow said Wednesday's crash-landing occurred near Lagos. Nigerian officials said the chopper went down about 110 miles (175 kilometers) from Lagos in the Niger Delta. There was no quick way to resolve the discrepancy Thursday night. Nigeria has suspended S-76C++ operations until Bristow is investigated. The Sultan |
The rumour which has reached Oz is that the latest ditching was simply due to fuel starvation, ie insufficient fuel to complete the mission.
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So target Zero stands up:D
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tgvbhy15
Damned if you do, damned if you don't ...... in these days of speedy social media.
Surely the most important thing is to quell the fears of the loved ones of the crew, passengers, oil workers ...... if management had that information, who cares a damn about the cause, the type of landing so long as all are safe and sound; you can worry about the investigation later. We all know, surely, second hand reports often cannot be relied upon - which makes it a delicate balance between publishing or not .... never mind the online sleuths and experts. |
What ever lead to the event, the limited damage seems to indicate a nicely controlled ditching. Pity about the bags deflating and rolling her over. Running short of fuel? Find that a little hard to believe unless there were extenuating circumstances.
Reports say, "This is just as a barge has been deployed to the scene of the crash off Lagos buoy to convey faulty helicopter to Lagos. THISDAY exclusively gathered that 11 occupants of the helicopter, comprising two pilots and nine passengers, were trapped for two hours and left to their fate before a merchant vessel chanced on them and rescued them. The vessel, MV Dijama, a supply ship and tug boat, rescued the occupants before emergency rescuers stormed the scene and took all 11, who had suffered dislocations and minor injuries, to the hospital. Also, THISDAY gathered that many of the 11 occupants who were flown to Lagos and were admitted into a private clinic for thorough check up before they were released." http://allafrica.com/download/pic/ma...6:w614:us1.png |
No ELT/EPIRB???
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Crab;
From my experience the crew tend to carry ELT's, but they are rarely (never in the hot places I worked, but I'm happy to be corrected about anywhere else) fitted to aircraft to keep the weight down. The North Sea always went belt and braces on ADELT, ELT etc, but the performance margins were better due to the climate. I often wonder with 20/20 hindsight whether the oil companies and everyone else in the off-shore chain ever contemplated the risks to safety caused by the constant threat of contract removal, price cuts and the occasionally awful commercial pressure placed on crews. Talking to mates who are still off-shore the current fear of unemployment is causing huge stress across the industry. Does Target Zero take worried, distracted and possibly fatigued crews into account? SND |
I have heard that it maybe "crew" related rather than mechanically related.
Its a Rumour Forum. |
No ELT/EPIRB??? |
I think the question was prompted by the speculation/indication that the aircraft sat on the water for "2hours" before rescue.
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Yes it was. All 406 Mhz transmissions are satellite monitored in UK so a simple phone call could have alerted the owners/operators if the ELT was registered (as it should be). At least someone might have known they were there within a few minutes instead of having to wait for a merchant vessel to chance upon them.
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If any of the so-called SAR experts cared to look at the photos which were posted by Megan, they would have seen the ADELT fitted on the starboard side of the tail boom. Also all Bristow helicopters operating in Nigeria have some form of rescue beacon carried in the dinghy or dinghy stowage and each crew member has a beacon in her/his life jacket.
In other photos I have seen of the aircraft floating upside down in the sea, all the flotation bags appear fully inflated, so the capsize of the aircraft seems likely to be caused by other factors - maybe the sea state? I have no idea. The wait of 2 hours mentioned in the newspaper report may, or may not be true. - Nigerian papers are notoriously unreliable. With the total absence of any credible SAR service in Nigeria, it was most likely due to it taking that long to get a ship there. There have been several times that the offshore oil companies in Nigeria have talked of funding a dedicated SAR helicopter, the last one I know of being around 4 years ago to have fully crewed, SAR S92. All have foundered because of inter-oil company squabbling as to which was going to run it, or lack of funding. It has always amazed me that as one of the largest oil producing nations, Nigeria's NEMA has had no offshore SAR capability. The cause of this ditching is not known yet, but as all the occupants of the aircraft have survived, the crew will doubtless be able to assist the investigation. The aircraft has been recovered, so it's likely cause will soon be known to Bristow. Hopefully the management will then release the information in the interests of safety (and to stop disgruntled employees using social media to air their grievances). |
Sir Niall Dementia
In the several hot-climate locations I have been, the authority always stipulates an aircraft mounted ELT as a minimum, as well as possibly a portable EPIRB/ELT, not to mention customer required / OGP recommended ADELT for offshore oil & gas operations ...... |
tistisnot;
Thanks for that. I was in SE Asia and Africa in the very early nineties and we had ELTs in the crew jackets and on the S61 an ELT by the freight door, but no ADELT or anything for the pax. The rest of my off-shore time was spent in very cold places where the aircraft were festooned with them, in fact so many that I did wonder if the whole lot were set off would they garble the signal and cause confusion. I've since been told that shouldn't happen, but it did tick around my little brain while over sea at 1-2 deg C! SND |
Sir Nial,
I think something akin to that did happen after the ETAP incident where the 225 was set down on the water inadvertently. Something about the PLBs the pax were wearing, fooling the aircraft ELT into reducing power, and thus hindering search in foggy conditions? Someone with much more knowledge will be along I'm sure to confirm whether or not I have that correct.......... |
In the pictures published above it does appear that the aft chamber of the forward right float is deflated, and the aft right float bag does not appear fully inflated, this may have contributed to the aircraft turning over, equally this deflation may have occurred during the salvage operations
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Fixerman - Nice phrase ...... "set down upon the water inadvertently"!!
I hardly think it hindered the EC225 rescue ..... it "alighted" pretty close to the rig (500m) and witnesses raised the alarm. But yes there was an issue with the passenger PLB's and interference with other supposedly smart ELT's ..... I think now software resolved. The issue here is though in remote areas, without airborne SAR, a SART is far more likely to effect a faster rescue as all international shipping nearby will receive it - not someone miles away searching for the HEX code, owner's contact details. Personal PLB's are really only for close in, I would suggest, once the SAR aircraft arrives though modern ac have thermal pictures etc. |
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c3...ized%20S76.jpg
This is the photo I have of the aircraft before the recovery |
Maybe I'm wrong, but should the ELT have been ejected put of it's housing before it can transmit.
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No requirement to, can transmit in situ or after deplyment depending on what you select on the control panel.
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Yes, fareastdriver, on the model of ADELT I'm familiar with, it should be deployed, if possible, immediatly before ditching, if not, ejection will be automatically commanded by water sensitive sensors. (as long as the arming selector is positioned on "arm deploy") Distress signals are activated by the upright position of the floating device.
On the above picture, the "ADELT" seems to still be attached to the airframe. But of course, we still can activate it from inside the cockpit, when it is still in place. |
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