The Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB), barely two months after the tragic crash of a Sikorsky SK76 helicopter operated by East Aviation in Port Harcourt, has revealed multiple violations of Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations (NCAR) by the handlers of the ill-fated aircraft.
The helicopter, contracted by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), plunged into the Atlantic Ocean near Bonny Finima, off the coast of Calabar, on October 24.
It carried six passengers and two crew members. While five bodies have been recovered, three remain unaccounted for.
Addressing journalists in Abuja on Tuesday, the NSIB Director-General, Alex Badeh, disclosed that the helicopter was not equipped with a Flight Data Recorder (FDR), a requirement under Part 7.8.2.2(q) of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations Act 2023.
Additionally, Badeh noted that the helicopter crew members failed to use standard phraseology throughout the flight, a lapse that further raised concerns about operational practices.
The NSIB refrained from drawing a direct connection between the violations and the crash but emphasized that the findings pointed to critical regulatory gaps in the aviation industry.
The preliminary findings of the bureau read partly, “The helicopter was fitted with a solid-state cockpit voice recorder; The helicopter was not fitted with a Flight Data Recorder; although Part 7.8.2.2(q) of Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations (Nig. CARs) 2023 requires that FDR shall be fitted on the helicopter; The flight crew used non-standard phraseology throughout the flight.”
The report further reads; “There were no standard callouts for the various phases of the flight; The helicopter Radio Altimeter (Rad alt) was snagged and deferred on October 18, 2024, six days before the accident; No dew point data was reported in the weather information passed to 5N-BQG on the day of the occurrence.”
While discussing the causes of the crash, Badeh explained that the investigators discovered that the vehicle appeared to be “Struggling to gain balance right before crashing into the ocean.”
He further noted that an aural warning from the aircraft followed the crew’s struggle: “Bank angle, Bank angle. ” This was the last recorded data on the Cockpit Voice Recorder, with smoke emanating from the engine before the aircraft ditched into the water.
Other reports released by the NSIB include a final report on the serious accidents involving Beech Baron 58 aircraft operated by the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology, Zaria , with nationality and registration marks 5N-CAG, which occurred on runway 5 at General Hassan Usman Katsina International Airport, Kaduna, on December 31, 2022, and five other incidents.
The NSIB, however, charged the NCAA to ensure strict compliance with the Nigerian Civil Aviation Regulations (Nig. CARs) 2023 part 7.8.2.2(q), which requires that all helicopters with a maximum take-off mass over 3175 kg and up to 7000 kg be fitted with a Flight Data Recorder.
