Experts say blade failed in helicopter tragedy

By PAUL YANDALL and PATRICK GOWER

A helicopter crash near Taumarunui that killed three Auckland men was probably caused by a catastrophic mid-air part failure, say industry experts.

Pilot Simon Green, aged 51, of Papakura, and his companions, Gene Crafar, 25, of Pukekohe, and John Mennie, 44, of Piha, were killed when their ex-military Bell 205 Iroquois crashed on Monday, 7km northeast of Taumarunui.

The trio were working for Wanganui Aero Work and were on their way to a possum poison drop in the area for the Manawatu-Wanganui Regional Council when their helicopter disintegrated in mid-air about 5.20 pm.

Witnesses described hearing a change in the helicopter's engine noise and seeing a rotor blade fly off seconds before it plummeted about 200m into a hillside, spreading wreckage over farmland in Echolands Valley.

Three Transport Accident Investigation Commission investigators were at the crash scene yesterday.

The bodies of the men were taken from the crash site yesterday afternoon. They are expected to be brought to their families in Hamilton today.

Toby Clark, a veteran helicopter pilot of 30 years and general manager of Auckland company Helilink, said pilot error looked unlikely because of the speed of the accident.

"It certainly appears like there has been a catastrophic mid-air failure of the helicopter," he said. "If something like a blade comes off then it is terminal. You are highly unlikely to survive - it's like a wing coming off an airplane."

He said there was some concern at the safety record of ex-military helicopters, which were increasingly being bought cheaply from Britain and the United States.

An Aviation Industry Association official, Qwilton Biel, said accidents caused by parts failures were getting rarer, but all indications of Monday's crash suggested it caused the accident.



Weather and visibility were good and there were no obstructions such as powerlines or other aircraft nearby.

The accident investigation commission and the Civil Aviation Authority are now investigating three fatal accidents this year involving ex-military helicopters, including a Bell 204 Iroquois that crashed in Wellington in January, and a Westland Wessex that crashed near Motueka in February.

Authority spokesman Martyn Gosling said there were about 20 ex-military aircraft flying here. The acting chief investigator of the commission, John Goddard, would not speculate on the cause of Monday's crash.



He said an accident report would take about six months but any safety issues that arose would be acted on immediately.

Pilot Simon Green had almost 30 years' experience flying, said the company's administration manager, Miles Grafton.

He said staff at the close-knit company, which employed about 50 people, were "not good" yesterday.

Mr Green's daughter, Natalie Pompey, said her father had been flying helicopters for 24 years.

"Flying, flying, flying - that was his passion. There wouldn't be many more experienced helicopter pilots around. At least he died doing something he loved."

She said all three men were great friends whose families knew each other well.

Mr Green, who was raised in Kaikoura, had done work for Aero Work since 1977. He began fulltime with the company after he and his wife, Helene, moved their family of four children to Auckland from Taihape in 1990.

Mr Crafar, the brother of former Superbikes motorcycle racer Simon Crafar, had been with the company for almost two years.

He operated the winches and also helped in preparation and maintenance. He was also learning to fly.

Monday's job was to have been one of his last before he returned to his career of being a farrier.

He handed in his notice last month and became engaged last week.

"We're absolutely devastated," said his father, Kevin Crafar.

Mr Mennie, a park ranger by training, had been the company's Auckland operations manager since 1998.

One of his daughters, Julia Mennie, said her father had loved his work.

Another daughter, Hannaka, turned 21 yesterday. He is survived by five children and his wife, Frances Mennie.

The three men met at the company's hangar in Pukekohe, about 3.30 pm on Monday. Their Iroquois took off about 4 pm.

They were to continue to another job in Masterton and were expected back in Auckland next week.

But five minutes from their destination at a company airstrip near Taumarunui, their helicopter crashed.