ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 145760
Last updated: 19 June 2013
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| Date: | 21-MAY-2012 |
| Time: | 02:50 p.m. |
| Type: |  Hughes 369D 500D |
| Operator: | Way to Go Heliservices Ltd. |
| Registration: | ZK-HXZ |
| C/n / msn: | 1170233D |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Airplane damage: | Written off (damaged beyond repair) |
| Location: | An isolated lake in north Canterbury -
 New Zealand
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | Agricultural |
| Departure airport: | |
The helicopter crashed into an isolated lake in north Canterbury on Monday 21 May 2012.
A police spokesman said no wreckage, nor the pilot, had been found yet.
The helicopter was one of two Rangiora-based Hughes 500s spraying gorse for the Department of Conservation on Monday afternoon.
When one failed to return just before 3pm, the pilot of the other helicopter returned to the scene and spotted wreckage in the lake.
The area is part of the Lake Sumner Conservation Park.
The helicopter, with Rangiora pilot Michael Graeme Mehrtens aboard, is thought to be at the bottom of Lake Sumner, about 140km northwest of Christchurch.
Police believe they know where the aircraft is, after debris and an oil slick was found, but the lake is 125 metres deep in the area - out of the reach of divers.
The pilot is presumed to have died.
Sources:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10807361
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/regional/106342/helicopter-crashes-into-north-canterbury-lake
Rangiora 6Jan2011Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 21-May-2012 00:58 | gerard57 | Added |
| 21-May-2012 04:11 | 122.57.122.50 | Updated [Aircraft type, Source, Narrative] |
| 22-May-2012 02:33 | flyernzl | Updated [Aircraft type, Registration, Cn, Operator] |
| 23-May-2012 08:43 | gerard57 | Updated [Damage, Narrative] |
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