Helicopter crash that killed Navy crew still a mystery

[David]

SD UNION-TRIBUNE


Minutes after lifting off from the deck of the amphibious assault ship Bonhomme Richard, two Navy MH-60S Seahawk helicopters flew in formation above the calm Pacific near San Clemente Island.

Bearing the call signs Bullet 10 and Bullet 11, the Seahawks cruised through a few light clouds at 2:23 p.m. Jan. 26, 2007. The flights were part of a training exercise on how to board and inspect ships at sea.

Suddenly, Bullet 10 dropped like a stone.

“Mayday, mayday, mayday,” said Lt. Adam Dyer, the aircraft's commander.

“Strap in, PCL, PCL,” Dyer said, ordering a cutback on the power control level.

His recovery attempts did no good. Nine seconds after the first indication of trouble, the helicopter slammed into the water tail down and rolled on its right side.

Everyone aboard the aircraft – Dyer, his co-pilot, Lt. j.g. Laura Mankey, and two search-and-rescue swimmers, Petty Officer 1st Class Cory Helman and Petty Officer 2nd Class Christopher Will – died in the accident.

Nearly a year later, naval aviators remain baffled as to why Bullet 10 fell about 50 miles west of Camp Pendleton. Navy investigators spent months interviewing witnesses, examining wreckage and detailing what happened in the final minutes before the crash. But they couldn't determined its cause.

The San Diego Union-Tribune obtained a copy of the investigation last week through a Freedom of Information Act request.

Unsolved crashes are “incredibly rare,” said April Phillips, a spokeswoman for the Naval Safety Center in Norfolk, Va.

As a result of the crash, the investigators urged the Navy to install crash-resistant flight data recorders on its aircraft. The devices record critical information such as air speed, altitude, pitch and engine power.

Such recorders aren't required in many military aircraft. They've been mandatory for civilian airliners for nearly 50 years.

“The lack of a flight data recorder on board the aircraft greatly hindered the search for the cause of the accident,” the lead investigator, whose name was deleted by Navy lawyers, wrote in his report. “A record would exist that could clearly identify any failed component.”

The report chronicled the Bonhomme Richard's quick response to the crash as Bullet 11's crew buzzed overhead. The ship's rescue swimmers and small boats reached the crash scene. They pulled Will's body from the water, but medical corpsmen couldn't revive him.

A 24-hour search turned up a few pieces of wreckage, but no signs of the crew. Three weeks later, Navy salvors recovered the rest of the helicopter and the bodies of the other three crew members from the ocean floor – 3,700 feet beneath the surface. They brought the remains to North Island Naval Air Station, where the helicopter's squadron is based.

Since then, investigators have found no reason for the Seahawk crash. Among their findings:

The pilots were fully qualified and well-rested. There was no indication of pilot error, a common cause of aviation accidents.

The helicopter's right side bore the brunt of the impact, confirming the account of the only eyewitnesses, a pair of Marines on the deck of the Bonhomme Richard.

The helicopter was properly maintained.

Although evidence indicated the pilot believed the tail rotor had failed, examination of the wreckage showed that the engines and rotors still were running upon impact. The investigators found “no overt indications” of mechanical failure.

“They've certainly examined every detail of what happened,” said Lt. Cmdr. Charlie Brown, a spokesman for the San Diego-based Naval Air Forces command.

Because of the Christmas holiday, Brown said, neither air safety investigators nor leaders of the squadron were available for comment.








An MH-60S Seahawk prepared to land on the flight deck of the dock landing ship Tortuga. Four Navy crew members died in January when a Seahawk helicopter crashed into the Pacific near San Clemente Island.

[Boats]

Crew Members Rescued from Navy Helicopter Crash off California Coast
Story Number: NNS071113-02
Release Date: 11/13/2007 1100 AM


From Commander, Naval Air Forces Public Affairs

USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN, At Sea (NNS) -- All seven crew members were rescued from a crash of a Navy HH-60H Seahawk helicopter off the coast of southern California Nov. 11 and returned safely to USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) with minor injuries.

The helicopter crashed at approximately 9 p.m. local time.

The helicopter is assigned to "Golden Falcons" Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron 2, stationed at Naval Air Station North Island. It was providing support for the Abraham Lincoln Strike Group at the time of the crash. The cause of the crash is under investigation.

The Everett, Wash.-based Nimitz-class aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln, embarked Carrier Air Wing 2, the ships of Destroyer Squadron 9, and commander, Carrier Strike Group 9 are underway approximately 100 miles from San Diego participating in Composite Training Unit Exercise.

The exercise is designed to enhance the interoperability of the strike group. The strike group is completing qualifications in preparation to deploy overseas early next year.

For more news from Commander, Naval Air Force, visit www.navy.mil/local/airpac/.