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ISTOCK/ALKANE


ACCIDENT RECOVERY


By David Jack Kenny


Slipping Standards Preflight complacency proves deadly.


“D


EFINING DEVIANCY DOWN” WAS THE late US Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan’s phrase for the gradual erosion of stan-


dards that results from tolerating previously unaccept- able behavior. Overlooking minor transgressions makes more serious offenses seem less significant, progres- sively expanding the boundaries of what’s considered permissible. While Moynihan’s focus was on crime and social


standards, the same argument applies to aviation. If seemingly trivial lapses—say, a perfunctory preflight— pass without consequences, it becomes easier to con- template cutting additional corners. Commercial aircraft operators have been known to succumb to this tempta- tion despite being subject to more rigorous reporting and inspection requirements than private owners. But private owners who let their standards slide aren’t likely to escape the consequences indefinitely.


The Flight On Jul. 8, 2019, the pilot of a Robinson R44 and one pas- senger flew from the former’s home in Sainte-Sophie, Québec, Canada, to a fishing camp the pilot owned on Lac-De La Bidière, where they were met by friends who


arrived by seaplane. The party stayed for two nights. The seaplane departed first, at around 12:25 pm on


Jul. 10. Weather was good, with calm winds under high scattered clouds. The time of the helicopter’s departure is unknown but was later estimated at around 12:56 pm. The pilot didn’t request a weather briefing or file a flight plan or flight itinerary; family members expected him to return that day but weren’t advised of a specific sched- ule, and no one was asked to track the flight. It was just before noon the next day before the


Trenton base of the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre (JRCC) was notified that the helicopter was missing. No emergency locator transmitter (ELT) signal had been detected, and the aircraft’s flight path was unknown.


The Search The JRCC initially dispatched a CC-130 Hercules four- engine turboprop and a CH-146 Griffon helicopter to search for the R44. They were unsuccessful, so on Jul. 12 the JRCC raised the search level to “major,” increasing the commitment of resources by the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) and establishing an inde- pendent incident command post. In addition to the CAF, the operation grew to involve the Canadian Coast Guard,


JUNE 2021 ROTOR 63


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