R22 helicopter down in the Umgeni River...

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TheGreenGoblin
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R22 helicopter down in the Umgeni River...

#1 Post by TheGreenGoblin » Mon May 03, 2021 10:36 am

https://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa ... 9dfeb7002e


Two killed in the accident it seems.

Seems a bird strike may have been the cause of the accident.
A bird strike is believed to have caused a helicopter crash in which two people were killed in Durban on Monday.

Kyle van Reenen of Emer-G-Med said a report about a helicopter crash in the Umgeni River was received at around 8.30am.

“Emergency care personnel were immediately dispatched. On arrival it was found that a light helicopter, a Robinson 22 was fully submerged in the Umgeni River.

“A rescue mission was launched by members of the Emer-G-Med team and the police search and rescue unit to retrieve the victims from the wreckage.

“Unfortunately it was found that both the pilot and co-pilot, aged between 30 and 40 years, were dead on arrival.

“At this stage the cause of the crash is believed to be a bird strike.
https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/south- ... n-highway/
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Re: R22 helicopter down in the Umgeni River...

#2 Post by Woody » Sun May 16, 2021 8:08 pm

When all else fails, read the instructions.

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Re: R44 helicopter down in the Vaal Dam!

#3 Post by TheGreenGoblin » Sun May 16, 2021 8:18 pm

Esterhysen is a very well known businessman. . Tragic for all concerned whatever the case!

61166c94b28a4eaab75200aeca6cf191.jpeg

Twas an R44. Footage of the actual accident doing the rounds. It is speculated that the pilot had some sort of medical emergency! I don't think that theory can be given much credence pending a pathology report!



Looks like he misjudged his height above the still water in the twilight. Controlled flight into the dam!
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Re: R22 helicopter down in the Umgeni River...

#4 Post by ian16th » Sun May 16, 2021 8:28 pm

The pilot and two beagle dogs bodies were found later in the wreckage.
The dogs wouldn't have been unrestrained and somehow made contact with the controls, would they?
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Re: R44 helicopter down in the Vaal Dam!..

#5 Post by TheGreenGoblin » Sun May 16, 2021 8:32 pm

ian16th wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 8:28 pm
The pilot and two beagle dogs bodies were found later in the wreckage.
The dogs wouldn't have been unrestrained and somehow made contact with the controls, would they?
My thought when I misread that they were in an R22. Plenty of space in the back of the R44 but if the dogs were unrestrained then that scenario could have pertained!
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Re: R44 helicopter down in the Vaal Dam!

#6 Post by TheGreenGoblin » Sun May 16, 2021 8:42 pm

He had flown all way to the Wilderness to pick his sister up on Friday. A long flight! +-1243 kilometres one way!

More detail here...

https://www.news24.com/news24/southafri ... h-20210515
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Re: R22 helicopter down in the Umgeni River...

#7 Post by PHXPhlyer » Sun May 16, 2021 8:51 pm

Ouch!
That hurt to see, too.

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Re: R44 helicopter down in the Vaal Dam!

#8 Post by TheGreenGoblin » Sun May 16, 2021 8:54 pm

PHXPhlyer wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 8:51 pm
Ouch!
That hurt to see, too.

PP
I agree, disturbing to see. Pictures of him and his sister on Facebook just before their flight from Rand Airport! Very sad to see that!
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Re: R44 helicopter down in the Vaal Dam...

#9 Post by TheGreenGoblin » Mon May 17, 2021 5:56 am

Some shots of the recovered helicopter. Given the violence of the initial contact with the water I had expected more damage but I guess the force of the water and the almost instant deceleration would have been more than enough to incapacitate the pilot and passengers. Egress from the helicopter may have been difficult in the dark. I guess the North Sea veterans here would have more value to add to the question about how difficult that might be?

A good friend asked about the altimeter. I guess a correctly set altimeter, if he had looked at it, would have given him a good reference height, but I must admit that I am not sure of the instrument lighting in the R44, and in the stressful, dark conditions, he may have been fixated on looking out and was not scanning.. The sun had set and he would have been looking out at a flat calm surface over water with all the depth perception problems that can bring. The helicopter speed seems to imply he had not yet come to the hover with implication that he believed he was a lot higher than he was. He was only about 250 metres from his usual landing spot on the shoreline on the Vaal Marina where his holiday house was.

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I think that residual fatigue may have also played a part in this accident given that in the previous two to three days he had flown over 2400 kilometers, including crossing demanding mountain passes at altitudes up to 10,000 feet. The pilot was not a young man and doing all that in an R44 would be extremely tiring. I know that the flight from Rand airport near Germiston to the Vaal dam is only about 127 kilometers, and it was a journey that he had made many times before, but the cumulative flight time, plus the late departure and the flight into the growing dark might finally have caught up with this chap.
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R44 helicopter down in the Vaal Dam...

#10 Post by TheGreenGoblin » Mon May 17, 2021 10:07 am

I guess if a man of Gene Cernan's ability could misjudge his height then lesser mortals like me should treat water surfaces with great caution....
1971 January 23: helicopter crash: Eugene Cernan was flying a Bell 47G helicopter as part of his Lunar Module training as Backup Commander for Apollo 14. The helicopter crashed into the Indian River at Cape Canaveral, Florida. Cernan nearly drowned because he was not wearing a life vest and received some second-degree burns on his face and singed hair. According to official reports at the time, the crash was the result of mechanical failure. Later accounts, written by Cernan himself in an autobiography, admit he was flying too low and showing off for nearby boaters. The helicopter dipped a skid into the water and crashed. James McDivitt, an Apollo Manager at the time, demanded that Cernan be removed from flight status and not be given command of Apollo 17. Cernan was defended by Deke Slayton and given the Apollo 17 command. James McDivitt resigned as an Apollo Manager shortly after the Apollo 16 mission.
http://www.check-six.com/Crash_Sites/Ce ... o-1971.htm
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Re: R44 helicopter down in the Vaal Dam...

#11 Post by CharlieOneSix » Mon May 17, 2021 10:40 am

TheGreenGoblin wrote:
Mon May 17, 2021 5:56 am
.......The sun had set and he would have been looking out at a flat calm surface over water with all the depth perception problems that can bring......
I think you may have hit the reason there - possibly a classic 'black hole' approach. His rate of descent doesn't look uncontrolled as it would if it was a mechanical issue.

A very experienced Training Captain and I were going to a very well lit offshore production platform one clear night. We could see the destination's lights from about 20 miles away. Unusually for the North Sea the sea was flat calm. My mate was the handling pilot and on a visual approach about half a mile from the destination I thought he was more than a bit low but for a few seconds I said nothing thinking he would correct the height. He didn't and I had to tell him to go around. It's not only PPLs who get caught out by black hole approaches.
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Re: R44 helicopter down in the Vaal Dam...

#12 Post by TheGreenGoblin » Mon May 17, 2021 2:27 pm

A bit of a background to the pilot here. It is appears he had just recently recovered from prostate treatment so there may have been a physiological factor in this accident as well. Very sad, though, and to lose his sister and his dogs as well, difficult to think about really.

https://rekord.co.za/376774/helicopter- ... ys-friend/
The pilot had recently undergone an operation for prostate problems. Friday was his first day back at work and also the first day that he was able to fly again after the surgery, says Van Staden.
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Re: R44 helicopter down in the Vaal Dam...

#13 Post by TheGreenGoblin » Tue May 18, 2021 3:49 am

Apropos of nothing relevant to the R44 accident, I see that the Vaal Marina was hit by a tornado back in 2017.



EF3 damage recorded...

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Re: R22 helicopter down in the Umgeni River...

#14 Post by ian16th » Fri Jun 11, 2021 11:40 am

Cynicism improves with age

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