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| Date: | Thursday 20 June 2024 |
| Time: | 13:06 UTC |
| Type: |  Aérospatiale AS 350B2 Ecureuil |
| Owner/operator: | Heli Explore Inc. |
| Registration: | C-GOOO |
| MSN: | 1376 |
| Year of manufacture: | 2008 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | near Wawa, ON -
 Canada
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | External load operation |
| Departure airport: | |
| Investigating agency: | TSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information verified through data from accident investigation authorities |
A Heli Explore Inc. Eurocopter AS 350 B2 was conducting long-lining operations in support of exploratory drilling operations. The helicopter was temporarily based at the mine site where the operations were taking place, approximately 26nm west of Wawa Airport (CYXZ), Ontario. During the second lift of the day, while flying at approximately 300 feet AGL, the pilot began a gradual descent and soon afterwards felt a strong jolt which caused a change in the attitude of the helicopter. He attempted to regain control of the aircraft, but after a subsequent and more severe jolt, he jettisoned the load, which fell clear of the helicopter onto a wooded area. The helicopter began to yaw to the left and attempts by the pilot to correct this yaw were unsuccessful.
The pilot attempted to gain some forward speed to reduce the yaw but did not have enough remaining altitude to complete the maneuver. He made an emergency landing into a wooded area, the main rotor blades contacted trees while the helicopter was still yawing to the left, and the helicopter was destroyed, coming to rest on the lower right side of the fuselage. The pilot received minor injuries and was able to crawl out of the helicopter. Personnel who were waiting to receive the slung load heard the helicopter in distress and the impact with trees, and made their way to the
site to assist, arriving approximately an hour after the occurrence.
The 406 ELT activated as designed, prompting JRCC to deploy assets to the site. The pilot had a satellite phone and was
able to contact the helicopter's owner and relay his coordinates to them. The pilot was airlifted from the site later in the afternoon.
Sources:
https://www.tsb.gc.ca/eng/medias-media/deploiement-deployment/aviation/2024/20240621.html
https://wawa-news.com/index.php/2024/06/23/tsb-investigating-accident-involving-helicopter-in-wawa-area/
https://bea.aero/en/investigation-reports/notified-events/detail/accident-to-the-helicopter-airbus-as350-registered-c-gooo-on-20-06-2024-near-wawa-ontario-canada/
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 22-Jun-2024 19:41 | Captain Adam | Added |
| 23-Jun-2024 13:38 | Terry | Updated [Narrative, ] |
| 25-Jun-2024 13:07 | Terry | Updated [Source, ] |
| 05-Jul-2024 13:18 | ASN | Updated [Registration, Cn, Operator, Phase, Nature, Source, Narrative, ] |
| 24-Jul-2024 14:38 | ASN | Updated [Time, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Source, Narrative, ] |
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