A fatal crash has led the Philippines to ground every Robinson helicopter in the country.
The Philippines civil aviation authority has "ordered the immediate grounding of all helicopters manufactured by Robinson Helicopter in light of the latest incident that killed Quezon provincial governor Rafael Nantes and four other people".
On 17 May a Robinson R44, with local registration RP-C2550, crashed into a residential area in Lucena City, the capital of the central province of Quezon, says the aviation authority. The accident killed four people on board, including Nantes, and one person the ground.
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© RobinsonA Robinson R44 like this crashed on May 17 killing five people |
The crash site is reportedly 1km (0.5nm) from where the helicopter took off. Investigators are focusing their attention on the helicopter's engine, say the reports.
The aviation authority says the grounding will last "until the cause of the latest helicopter crash is determined and airworthiness of all Robinson helicopters are evaluated".
Records show there are 51 Robinson helicopters registered in the Philippines, 33 R44s and 18 R22s. All are privately owned, except for one government-owned aircraft, the aviation authority says.
Source: Flight International
