Rotor blade debris that broke off the helicopter, killing the worker, found Transportation Safety Board of Canada's investigation
A worker at a Nunavut gold mine was killed last year when a helicopter rolled outside the mine site, found a Transportation Safety Board of Canada investigation.
According to the investigation report, a pilot tried to land the helicopter near the Agnico Eagle Hope Bay mine in September.
The pilot noticed the worker was crouching to look at the helicopter's tail as it landed. The pilot then leaned out the door to take a look and let go of the controls.
That's when the helicopter started to roll. The pilot tried to regain control, but it just kept rolling.
The pilot got out of the helicopter without being injured. However, the worker was fatally wounded by rotor blade debris that broke off the helicopter when it rolled.
“The investigation into the rollover is a class-four probe, meaning it does not contain findings or recommendations,” wrote The Canadian Press, citing the report.
Three Alberta government workers and a pilot were injured in a helicopter crash in January.
Previously, a pilot was badly injured during a plane crash in Montreal’s Dieppe Park.
In 2019, a pilot of a commercial helicopter died after a crash that struck a respected Indigenous carver's studio and narrowly missed the artist on Vancouver Island.
In August 2013, a large UPS cargo plane crashed on approach to the airport in Birmingham, Ala., killing the pilot and co-pilot.
Helicopter operators use Safety Management Systems (SMS) to help manage the consistent application of policies and procedures, both in terms of regulatory compliance and helicopter manufacturer updates, and in terms of the expectations of the operators who are contracting the service, according to the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP).
In 2013, the Transportation Safety Board said the federal government has repeatedly ignored recommendations designed to prevent or reduce fires after small plane crashes — changes the agency said could have spared the lives of two pilots who died when a twin-engine turboprop hit a road and burst into flames near Vancouver's airport in 2011.
Also, training is important before one can operate helicopters, CAPP said.
“Helicopter crews and support staff must meet rigorous training requirements and experience levels before operating both on- and offshore. These crews and support staff undertake extensive maintenance programs on their aircrafts, which includes regular daily and weekly checks as well as those based on hours of operation or in response to planned or required maintenance. There are also checks that happen after every flight.”
