Copterline Flight 103

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Copterline Flight 103
Copterline Sikorsky S-76C + (OH-HCI) at Helsinki Malmi.jpg

The crashed machine in August 2002
Accident summary
Accident type Servo failure (SCF)
place near Naissaar ( 59 ° 32 ′ 33.2 ″  N , 24 ° 43 ′ 52.5 ″  E )
date August 10, 2005
Fatalities 14th
Survivors 0
Aircraft
Aircraft type Sikorsky S-76C +
operator Copterline
Mark OH-HCL
Departure airport Tallinn Airport
Destination airport Helsinki-Malmi Airport
Passengers 12
crew 2
Lists of aviation accidents

Copterline flight 103 ( flight number AAQ103 ) is a line of flight of Copterline from Tallinn Airport to Helsinki-Malmi . On 10 August 2005 at 12:40 collapsed helicopter of the type Sikorsky S-76 C + shortly after takeoff in Tallinn near small island Naissaar in the Tallinn Bay. All 14 inmates were killed in the accident.

the accident

According to information from the Finnish airline Copterline, the helicopter was scheduled to take off from Tallinn at 12:30 p.m. in order to begin its scheduled flight over the Gulf of Finland to Helsinki . However, there was a delay of several minutes. At 12:40 p.m., just two minutes after take-off, radio contact broke off. When the first rescue teams arrived at the scene of the accident about five kilometers from the coast just ten minutes later, only the stern of the helicopter was sticking out of the water. Shortly thereafter, the wreck sank completely in the Baltic Sea , making it impossible to quickly rescue survivors. As the spokesman for the Estonian rescue workers, Aivar Muriks, announced, his rescue team could not find anyone. Even specialists requested from Finland did not manage to rescue victims from the 60-meter-deep helicopter by evening.

On August 11, divers recovered the bodies of all twelve passengers and one of the two Finnish pilots. The passengers were six Finns, four Estonians and two Americans . They were then all taken to Tallinn for an autopsy.

The body of the second pilot was only discovered and recovered on August 25.

Finally, on August 12, the wreckage of the machine, which had broken in two parts, was lifted and taken by ship to the Tallinn port and then to the airport, where an in-depth investigation began.

On February 14, 2006 it was announced in a press release that the servos of the main rotor are the focus of the ongoing investigations.

Investigations

The most likely cause of the crash has been the bad weather in the region at the time of the accident. The day before, the competitions at the World Athletics Championships in Helsinki in 2005 had been interrupted due to torrential rain and heavy storms. The ferry lines between the two capitals Tallinn and Helsinki ceased operations. According to the Meteorological Institute in Helsinki, wind speeds of up to 25 meters per second sometimes prevailed over the Gulf of Finland. Investigations by the Estonian public prosecutor's office should now clarify whether the airline may have violated flight safety regulations.

Even if an investigation of the wreck has been ordered, technical defects in the helicopter have so far been largely ruled out. The last major inspection, which is routinely held after 50 hours of flight, took place on July 21, 2005 in Finland. No defects were found. The last inspection of the machine, which was built in 2000 and had a total of 6253 flight hours, took place on August 9, 2005. No deficiencies were discovered during this inspection either.

The 41-year-old pilot and the 57-year-old co-pilot were considered very experienced. The pilot was in the service of the Finnish border guards as a flight captain of a rescue helicopter for more than 20 years and had participated in the rescue operation for survivors after the sinking of the Baltic ferry Estonia in 1994 . The copilot Peter Frederiksson flew for Copterline since 1995.

Further investigations should now shed light on the darkness. The Estonian authorities can definitely rule out a terrorist attack.

Meanwhile, less than 24 hours after the accident, Copterline resumed scheduled flights between Helsinki and Tallinn, but the scheduled service was later suspended.

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