Watchdog orders helicopter checks

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European regulators have issued a directive requiring safety checks on the models of Super Puma helicopters involved in recent North Sea crashes.

The European Aviation Safety Agency order gives force to recommendations issued on Friday by UK authorities.

The inspections are needed because it is still not known what caused the gearbox to fail in the 1 April accident, in which 16 people died.

A Super Puma also ditched in February, but all 18 people on board survived.

The aircraft which came down off Aberdeenshire at the beginning of April suffered a "catastrophic" gearbox failure.

That caused its rotors to detach and they hit the fuselage, severing the tail.

In the crash, everyone on board was killed, and the helicopter was destroyed. But no-one knows why it happened.

SUPER PUMA AS 332L Four-bladed helicopter used primarily by offshore oil firmsCapacity: Up to 25 passengersCrew: 2Max. speed: 278 km/h (172.7mph)Range: 776 km (482 miles)

To try and find out, regulators have already imposed more intensive checking of the electronic systems that monitor what is going on inside gearboxes, on the the AS33L2 and EC225LP variants of the Super Puma.

Now they have followed that up with a Europe-wide directive requiring everyone flying the two models to take their gearboxes apart.

Engineers will have to check for metal particles, and any damage to components.

Systems on board the Bond Super Puma which came down on 1 April had detected a particle in the gearbox a week before the accident.

Monitoring was stepped up on that aircraft, but no more abnormalities were found before it crashed.

Flights from Aberdeen to North Sea offshore installations using the affected helicopters have already been grounded voluntarily.

Oil and gas companies are due to meet again on Sunday to decide what to do next, now they have seen details of the directive.