NEW ZEALAND GROUNDS R44 HELICOPTERS DUE TO BLADE CRACKING ISSUE

2015-02-20 19:54:52

by Elan Head

A crack such as the one in this blade, which was the subject of a Jan. 26 continuing airworthiness notice, may have led to a fatal crash on Feb. 19. CAA Photo

The New Zealand Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has issued an emergency airworthiness directive (AD) for Robinson R44 helicopters, following a fatal crash on Feb. 19.

Stephen Anthony Nicholson Combe, 42, and James Louis Patterson Gardner, 18, of the Queenstown helicopter company Over The Top were killed when the R44 they were flying went down in a remote site in the Lochy River basin.

According to the CAA, scene examination suggests that the aircraft may have experienced an in-flight main rotor blade failure similar to that reported in CAA continuing airworthiness notice 62-003. Issued on Jan. 26, 2015, that notice (which can be found here) describes a significant crack on a part number C016-7 Robinson R44 main rotor blade that caused a severe main rotor blade vibration and emergency landing.

The AD, effective on Feb. 21, prohibits flight of all Robinson R44 series helicopters fitted with C016-7 blades. Aircraft in remote locations may complete one further flight to the nearest appropriate facility, provided that they are subject to a detailed visual inspection of the blade skin in the region of the outboard chord increase.

The new C016-7 or “Dash 7” blades were intended to resolve problems with part number C016-2 and C016-5 blades, which were subject to debonding issues. The CAA’s AD comes not long after the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration issued an AD that imposes a life limit on C016-2 and C016-5 blades, requiring their replacement with the Dash 7 blades.

Update: Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority has now issued its own AD prohibiting flight of R44 helicopters with Dash 7 blades, until further notice.

via New Zealand grounds R44 helicopters due to blade cracking issue | Vertical Magazine – The Pulse of the Helicopter Industry.