Auckland Is wreckage recovered
The Marine Countess has landed the wreckage of the BK117 which crashed just off Enderby Island on 22 April during a medical evacuation. The wreckage is now stored in a secure facility at Bluff Harbour and will soon be conveyed to Wellington for examination by officials from TAIC.
The examination will form part of the commission’s report into the causes of the crash. TAIC is investigating the crash and has a protection order over the wreckage.
Simon Pleasants, commission senior communications advisor, says the wreckage will be transferred to Wellington and held in a storage facility until the investigation is complete if the commission believes it needs to go there.
“At this stage the wreckage is not as important as the evidence provided by the people that were on the helicopter,” says Mr Pleasants.
On 22 April Southern Lakes Helicopters pilot Andrew Hefford, medic John Lambeth and winchman Lester Stevens were responding to a medical call to retrieve a sick seaman from a trawler about 500km south of Invercargill when their BK117 crashed into the sea near the Auckland Island archipelago. The three men swam to shore and were rescued about 16hr later by their colleagues from Southern Lakes Helicopters.
Lloyd Matheson, Southern Lakes operations manager, has confirmed TAIC had given the company permission to attempt to retrieve the wreckage. He also confirmed the wreckage of the helicopter had been recovered and placed aboard the Marine Countess for delivery at Bluff.
The operation had been undertaken as soon as the company received permission to do so from the commission. The rapid recovery was driven by a DOC requirement to remove the aircraft wreckage from the marine environment, and it was also important to recover the wreckage as soon as possible to assist the company with its investigation into the crash.
- Report by John King.
More Articles
Current Issue
» Airport makes use of quiet time
» Airline returns to regions under level 2
» Auckland Is wreckage recovered
» Sweeping changes proposed
» AOA sensor grounds Cirrus jets