One person has died and another is critically injured following a helicopter crash in Norway.
A woman in her 60s died and five others were injured when the Sikorsky-S92 helicopter ditched in the sea near the Norwegian island of Sotra at around 7:30pm on Wednesday night.
The Bristow-operated search and rescue (SAR) helicopter was taking part in a training exercise involving Norwegian state-owned oil firm Equinor and a cargo ship. Statements from Norwegian operators suggest the incident occurred during “low-altitude training flights” associated with vessel/boat hoisting.
Norwegian media is reporting the woman killed in the crash worked as a nurse for Equinor and said their next-of-kin has been notified.
The five other men on board all reportedly worked for Bristow and were transported to Haukeland University Hospital in Bergen with various levels of injury.
The hospital said on social media this morning that one man is in a critical condition, one man sustained a serious injury and three others sustained minor injures.
In a statement, Equinor chief executive Anders Opedal described the crash as a “deeply tragic incident”.
“Today is a difficult day for many. Our thoughts are with the families, close ones and others affected,” Mr Opedal said.
© Bloomberg“We have now received the difficult message that we have lost an accomplished and dear colleague.
“It is also important for me to emphasise that everyone on board the helicopter was on assignment for Equinor. Our key task now is to help take care of those involved.
“We express our heartfelt thanks to the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre and everyone involved in the rescue operation and the ongoing work.”
The cause of the accident is not yet known, and Equinor said it is cooperating closely with Bristow and Norwegian authorities. Mr Opedal has reportedly travelled to the hospital in Bergen where the patients are being treated.
Equinor suspended all of its regular flights on the Norwegian continental shelf following the incident.
Norwegian operator Aker BP has also suspended flights involving the S-92 “until further notice”, as have some UK helicopter operators.
Investigation underway
Norwegian police are working to recover the wreckage and in a press conference Western Police District chief of staff Gustav Landro told Norwegian media he believes the helicopter’s ‘black box’ will be recovered.
“The biggest challenge in our work has been and continues to be poor weather conditions. High waves and strong winds make it difficult to get hold of wreckage,” Mr Landro said.
© Shutterstock / Photofex_AUTThe Norwegian Safety Investigation Authority (NSIA) said it has sent investigators to Bergen and to the helicopter operator’s main base in Stavanger to start the initial investigations.
NSIA said it is working acquire a vessel to conduct the salvage operation and once recovered, the wreckage will most likely be transported to Håkonsvern military base, and subsequently to the NSIA base at Lillestrøm.
The UK’s Foreign Office said it was monitoring the situation and was in contact with the local authorities, though no British people are reported to have been involved in the incident.
“Our staff stand ready to support British nationals abroad 24/7,” it added.
Crash details
The search and rescue (SAR) helicopter, registered LN-OIJ, went down at 19.40 CET on Thursday, around nine nautical miles west of Bergen while on a training exercise for Equinor, Bristow confirmed.
It had departed from Flesland to conduct SAR training west of Lønøy, Sotra. The six people on board include two pilots.
Equinor and Bristow said efforts are underway to collect information, but the cause is not yet known.
The state-backed oil firm said it has suspended all of its regular helicopter flights on the Norwegian continental shelf until 1pm CET on Thursday 29 February.
Flights in the UK are also being suspended by the firm.
Norwegian media reporting the helicopter involved in the accident near Bergen is a SAR helicopter operated by Bristow. LN-OIJ’s flight profile and flight time indicates it may be the helicopter in question. https://t.co/9NSjCEjPzM pic.twitter.com/8fazvHzhHN
— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) February 28, 2024
Simon Sparkes, a test pilot at Forsvarsmateriell, the Norwegian Defence Agency, said a chopper from Stavanger and a CHC rescue helicopter from Floro conducted the rescue, ferrying the people from the stricken Bristow chopper to Bergen.
He reported: “All six crew rescued from S-92 which ditched west of Bergen this evening. The Bristow Norway S-92 was on a SAR training mission when the accident occurred.
“A RNoAF AW101 SARQueen from Stavanger and a CHC AS332L1 from Florø conducted the rescue ferrying the rescued personnel to hospital in Bergen. It is not known why the aircraft ditched.”
Statements
Norwegian operator Aker BP confirmed in a statement it has suspended all helicopter traffic involving the S-92 until further notice.
Aker BP executive vice president for operations Georg Vidnes said: “Our thoughts are first and foremost with those affected by the accident.
“Safety is always our most important priority, and this of course also includes helicopter safety. Furthermore, we will continuously assess how this incident affects our flight program and operations.”
Bristow said: “It is with deep sadness that we can report one fatality has been confirmed. The other five crew members have varying levels of injuries. Our thoughts are with all those affected during this incredibly difficult period.
“At this time, the full resources of Bristow’s incident response team are being mobilized. The Company is in the process of contacting and providing assistance to family members of those onboard and fully cooperating with authorities responding to the incident. Our highest priority is to take care of our crew and their family members and provide them with any assistance needed.”
Speaking at an industry event in Aberdeen today, Offshore Energies UK chief executive David Whitehouse said his thoughts are with those affected by the crash.
Sector ‘ready to support’ those affected
Norwegian union Industri Energi said it had been “continuously informed” of the situation in an update issued last night.
Union secretary Henrik Fjeldsbø added: “We are in close dialogue with the companies involved and the manufacturer Sikorsky. But we will not speculate about the cause.”
Equinor has established a next-of-kin support line on +47 800 500 20 and has contributed to establishing a centre for next of kin at the Scandic Kokstad hotel in Bergen, in cooperation with the police.
The UK’s Oil & Gas Chaplaincy also offered condolences after what it called a “distressing and tragic incident.”
“Our thoughts and prayers are with those immediately affected, family members, and all those involved in rescue and response,” it said in a statement.
“Incidents like this are thankfully rare, but speak to the continued risk faced by all who work in the North Sea. We stand ready to support anyone in the UK Oil and Gas industry who has been affected, directly or indirectly, by these events and encourage you to make contact with us for any assistance required.”
S-92
Norway is almost entirely reliant on the S-92 helicopter for its oil and gas operations.
While no information has been offered on the cause, any grounding of the helicopter type would create major logistical issues for the country.
In 2016, after a fatal crash off Norway, the Super Puma – then the dominant helicopter – was grounded and all but entirely exited the market.
Updated at 1600.
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