An aircraft electronics expert has told the inquiry into the 2009 Super Puma disaster he was “baffled” by system data for the helicopter just a week before its fatal crash into the North Sea.
Phil Eaton, 53, was senior avionics engineer for operator Bond at the time.
Giving evidence on the 20th day of the fatal accident inquiry in Aberdeen, Mr Eaton said he had never seen anything like what he faced on March 25, 2009, when a colleague showed him unusual helicopter data.
He said computer screen graphs for G-REDL, which later crashed, killing everyone on board, made no sense.
Mr Eaton added: “I didn’t like the look of the data. It was not like I had ever seen before.
“I was baffled to be honest.”
The unusual graph, measuring vibration levels in the gearbox, prompted him to contact helicopter manufacturer Eurocopter for advice.
Eurocopter asked for screen “dumps”, which Matthew Smailes, Bond’s health and usage monitoring system (Hums) adviser at the time, sent to the French company.
After looking at all the information, including the discovery of a tiny metal fragment in G-REDL’s gearbox, Eurocopter Hums expert Brice Fernando sent Bond’s team an e-mail recommending a troubleshooter to check for any more metal particles.
The e-mail added: “If nothing abnormal is found, there is no reason to ground the aircraft and you can go flying tomorrow morning.”
Special inspections requested by Eurocopter revealed no more fragments and the helicopter continued in service until the tragedy on April 1.
Read full news and reaction to the latest evidence at the FAI in tomorrow’s Press and Journal