Helicopter given green-light to fly less than 24 hours before North Sea accident

A helicopter was cleared to fly less than 24 hours before it crash-landed on a North Sea platform and spun through 180 degrees.

Damage to the CHC-operated Sikorsky S-92s tail rotor was missed during an inspection before it left Aberdeen to head to an accommodation module in Total’s Elgin field.

And during a shuttle flight to the West Franklin platform three miles away it suffered equipment failure which would have “seriously” affected the ability of flight crews to maintain control of the helicopter”.

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