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Super Puma crash: UK team to help inquiry in Norway | Super Puma crash: UK team to help inquiry in Norway |
(about 5 hours later) | |
UK air accident investigators are heading to Norway to help with an inquiry into a helicopter crash, thought to have killed 13. | |
A team from the UK's Air Accidents Investigation Branch is heading to the city of Bergen, near the crash site. | A team from the UK's Air Accidents Investigation Branch is heading to the city of Bergen, near the crash site. |
It has investigated a number of crashes involving helicopters operating to and from offshore oil and gas fields in recent years. | It has investigated a number of crashes involving helicopters operating to and from offshore oil and gas fields in recent years. |
One of the victims is understood to be from Scotland. | |
Eleven people are known to have died and two more are presumed dead after the Airbus EC225LP helicopter - or Super Puma - crashed on Friday. | |
Commercial Super Puma flights in the UK have been grounded by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) following the crash. | |
The helicopter was flying from the Gullfaks oil field to Bergen, a centre for the North Sea oil and gas industry, when it crashed near the small island of Turoey. | |
A major rescue operation was launched but ended within hours of the crash. In addition to the Briton, 11 Norwegians and an Italian were on the flight. | |
In 2012, EC225 Super Puma helicopters crashed in two incidents in Scotland - one off Aberdeen and another off Shetland - that were both blamed on gearbox problems. | In 2012, EC225 Super Puma helicopters crashed in two incidents in Scotland - one off Aberdeen and another off Shetland - that were both blamed on gearbox problems. |
In both cases, all passengers and crew were rescued. EC225s in the UK were grounded following the crashes but given the go-ahead to resume flying in August 2013. | |
However that model was again grounded, along with several others, later that same month after a Super Puma (AS332 L2) crashed off Shetland, killing four people. | |
On Friday, the CAA announced a restriction on all EC225 commercial passenger flights, mirroring action taken by its Norwegian counterpart. | |
The restriction does not apply to search and rescue flights, it said. | The restriction does not apply to search and rescue flights, it said. |
BP and Statoil have also suspended the use of the aircraft model, so it is unable to carry oil and gas workers. | BP and Statoil have also suspended the use of the aircraft model, so it is unable to carry oil and gas workers. |
Super Pumas are responsible for many of the 140,000 helicopter passenger flights in the UK each year. | Super Pumas are responsible for many of the 140,000 helicopter passenger flights in the UK each year. |