Pilots censured on helicopter bungle

A Navy pilot and co-pilot responsible for a lashing bungle which damaged a Seasprite helicopter during anti-terrorist patrols in the Gulf of Oman last year have been censured, the Defence Force said yesterday.

The Seasprite, aboard the Navy frigate HMNZS Te Mana last May, was incorrectly lashed to the deck, a court of inquiry found.

The helicopter was badly damaged by excessive vibration, known as ground resonance, when its jet engine was started for a routine run.

Repair costs have been estimated at between $1.5-$3 million.

The Navy pilot and co-pilot involved in the incident had been censured, Air Force spokesman Squadron Leader Ric Cullinane said.

"That essentially means a letter goes into their file and there will be consequences for future employment, promotion or postings," he said.

"But there is the opportunity to show that it was a one-off incident."

The incident may eventually cost nearly $4 million, once additional costs of delivering a replacement helicopter to the gulf and bringing the damaged Seasprite home are accounted for.

The accident happened when the frigate was deployed as part of a multi-national taskforce hunting for terrorists, sympathisers and illegal cargoes in the gulf and the Arabian Sea.

Following court recommendations, the Navy and Royal New Zealand Air Force are now developing new publications to highlight correct lashing procedures and the dangers of ground resonance, and are reviewing training materials.

The Air Force magazine Insight said the Navy was fortunate the pilot was unscathed and the aircraft was repairable.

"The majority of ground resonance events that have occurred on a Seasprite have resulted in complete destruction of the aircraft."

Mechanical problems with the Air Force's five Seasprite helicopters in the past year reduced training time and resulted in one mission sacrificing flight safety, Insight said.

"On this occasion an aircraft, that was only rated for day visual flight rules (VFR) flying, flew into the hours of darkness and the crew were unaware that the anti-collision lights were unserviceable."

The Seasprites recorded 65 flight safety events (FSE) in 2004.

Eight incidents involved smoke and fumes, and five of those occurred in the same helicopter, which took eight months to repair.

Numerous mechanical problems in the past year had meant training sorties had not been completed in time and put pressure on instructors to conduct exercises whenever possible, Insight said.

The Seasprites reported more incidents involving human factors than any other squadron, "which is commendable, as all squadrons will have had a number of incidents that went unreported", the magazine said.

A total of 357 FSEs were reported over 2004.

- NZPA