Story ID: 
First AW169 Crash Kills Five
By: Mark Huber
Caption: Kills Thai Billionaire, Four Others
Word Count: 889
Thai billionaire Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha and four others were killed in the first-ever Leonardo Helicopters AW169 accident. The 2016 medium-twin helicopter, G-VSKP, S/N 69018, crashed the night of October 27 shortly after it lifted off from the center field pitch of King Power Stadium in Leicester City, UK. Eyewitness reports said the helicopter struggled to gain altitude to clear the stadium and then spiraled down rapidly into an adjacent parking lot, where it was consumed by a post-crash fire.

Investigators from the UK’s Air Accidents Investigations Branch (AAIB) recovered the aircraft’s digital flight recorder (voice and data), “which was subject to intense heat as a result of the post-accident fire” and took it to the AAIB laboratory in Farnborough for analysis.

In a statement, Leonardo expressed condolences and said it was “ready to support the AAIB with their investigation to determine the cause of this accident.”

The crash occurred shortly after 8:30 p.m local time, 40 minutes after the English Premier League soccer game between Leicester City and West Ham United ended. Srivaddhanaprabha, who made his $5 billion fortune establishing the chain of King Power duty-free shops in Thailand, bought the Leicester team in 2010 and regularly commuted to the stadium from Berkshire via helicopter.   

Following up on an EASA Emergency Airworthiness Directive issued after the accident, the FAA issued a more comprehensive Emergency AD (AD 2018-23-52) to cover Leonardo AW169 and AW189 twin-engine helicopter tail rotor servo-actuator assemblies. The FAA said it “determined the unsafe condition exists and is likely to exist or develop on other helicopters of the same type design.”

The FAA AD requires inspecting the nut, cotter pin, lock-wire, hinge bracket connected to the tail rotor servo-actuator feedback lever link, and each connection of the tail rotor servo-actuator feedback lever link. It also requires applying a paint stripe or torque seal on the nut and reporting certain information to Leonardo. 

The EASA AD specifies visually inspecting the nut, cotter pin, lock wire, and hinge bracket for condition and absence of damage, while the FAA Emergency AD requires inspecting those parts for correct installation and loose, broken, and missing parts. While the EASA AD specifies visually inspecting the connection elements of the tail rotor servo-actuator feedback lever link, the FAA Emergency AD requires inspecting all three connections of the tail rotor servo-actuator feedback lever link for correct installation and loose, broken, and missing parts. The inspections specified by the FAA Emergency AD are not limited to visual inspections.

The EASA AD requires contacting Leonardo for approved instructions if there is any damage or other findings, while the FAA Emergency AD requires performing any necessary repairs in accordance with FAA-approved procedures. The FAA AD covers seven helicopters on the FAA registry and estimates the cost of compliance at $255 per helicopter. Leonardo has produced approximately 70 AW169s and 55 AW189s to date. ​More than 50 AW169s have been delivered and approximately 150 have been ordered. Air ambulance AW169s are currently in service in the UK, Norway, and Asia.

Sidebar:

Leonardo announced in mid-November that it is selling 22 new AW169M medium twin-engine helicopters to Italy’s state Guardia di Finanza for an initial $315.5 million including support and training. The deal could be worth another $112 million if the support package is extended. Deliveries will start next summer and are expected to be completed by 2024. The aircraft will be used for patrol and reconnaissance, law enforcement, search and rescue, and homeland security. They will join a fleet of 14 AW139 intermediate twins, six of which are already in service and the following eight due to be delivered in 2019. The Guardia di Finanza maintains more than 100 aircraft and is responsible for patrolling Italy’s territorial waters and addressing financial crime and smuggling. The AW169Ms for the Guardia di Finanza will receive a military qualification by the Italian Directorate of Air Armaments (ARMAEREO) and will feature a dedicated configuration including rescue hoist, emergency flotation system and life rafts, wire cutters, TCAS II (Traffic Collision Avoidance System), NVG (Night Vision Goggle) compatible cockpit, HTAWS (Helicopter Terrain Awareness Warning System), advanced communication system, OPLS (Obstacle Proximity Lidar System), advanced HUMS (Health Usage Monitoring System), AFCS (Automatic Flight Control System) with SAR modes, searchlight, ice detector, fast roping and satcom. The aircraft will also have a range of Leonardo systems such as RW ATOS (Airborne Tactical Observation and Surveillance) system with an advanced operator console, Gabbiano radar, LEOSS (Long Range Electro-Optical Surveillance System), M428 IFF transponder, V/UHF radio systems cockpit panels and lighting and provisions for SPHYDER (Smart Processing Hyperspectral Detection and Reconnaissance System). 

“This contract will allow us to deliver the Guardia di Finanza a new generation helicopter with the best technologies available, to perform missions which are getting more and more complex and challenging. Our ability to provide state-of-the-art products to meet the requirements of Italian government agencies and armed forces, for the security of our nation, is the result of Leonardo’s leading edge technology and innovation,” said Alessandro Profumo, Leonardo CEO.
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