Kobe helicopter crash puts spotlight on Sikorsky S-76B chopper

 

  • Investigations underway

The maker of the helicopter that crashed and killed former NBA superstar Kobe Bryant on Sunday pledged to investigate the incident.

Defense contractor and aerospace giant Lockheed Martin said it would probe the crash of its Sikorsky S-76B helicopter in Calabasas, California, near Malibu, which killed nine people.

On August 12, 2015, Sikorsky S-76C+ belonging to Bristow Helicopters (Nigeria) crashed into the Lagos Lagoon in the Oworonshoki area of Lagos.

Investigation by Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB) disclosed that flight recorder data indicated that at 1000ft and 120Kts, the helicopter experienced sudden pitch up, and left roll with varying attitude of yaw, roll and pitch for 12 seconds until it impacted water at about 1531hrs.

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The S-76 series helicopter debuted in the 1970s. Sikorsky has made several major upgrades to it since then, including the most recent S76-D model. The company has sold than 875 worldwide, including 103 units of the S-76B, Sikorsky spokesperson Callie Ferrari said in an email.

There were no immediate indications that defects or systems failures caused the crash.

The maker of the helicopter that crashed and killed former NBA superstar Kobe Bryant on Sunday pledged to investigate the incident.

Defense contractor and aerospace giant Lockheed Martin said it would probe the crash of its Sikorsky S-76B helicopter in Calabasas, California, near Malibu, which killed nine people.

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The S-76 series helicopter debuted in the 1970s. Sikorsky has made several major upgrades to it since then, including the most recent S76-D model. The company has sold than 875 worldwide, including 103 units of the S-76B, Sikorsky spokesperson Callie Ferrari said in an email.

There were no immediate indications that defects or systems failures caused the crash.

National Transportation Safety Board spokesman Christopher O’Neil said in an email that the agency “won’t speculate about” the cause of the incident. An NTSB team of investigators is being deployed to California.

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The S-76 series helicopter was “originally built for the rigorous demands of the offs​hore oil & gas” industries,” but “its capabilities fit naturally into other market segments,” including executive transportation and emergency services, Lockheed Martin says on its website.

Wole Shadare