According to a 15-page report released by the Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB) on Monday, initial findings include that the helicopter had a valid certificate of airworthiness and was topped to full-tank capacity on August 27 after which a 20-minute test-flight was conducted.
AIB’s report also noted that the helicopter had no fuel jettisoning capacity.
The report added that the ill-fated aircraft had an endurance of three hours and 15 minutes and a flight time of two hours and 45 minutes.
The aircraft, on August 28, flew for almost three hours and crashed with no fuel left in its tanks.
The helicopter crash, which occurred in a residential area, had stunned Lagosians.
All three persons onboard; one pilot, an engineer and a fitter mechanic died.
However, no casualty was recorded from those on the ground.
The report also revealed that the pilot’s last medical examination was valid until August 6, 2020.
The AIB said it did not find evidence that an application for the exemption provided by the All Operators’ Letter (AOL) DG02020 had been submitted to the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA).
The pilot’s last proficiency check was also reported to have been valid till August 24, 2020, and there was no evidence to show that an application for the exemption provided by the AIL DG018/ 20 had been submitted to the NCAA.
“The helicopter was not equipped with a flight data recorder or a cockpit voice recorder. Neither was required by the relevant aviation regulations but equipped with a Garmic GNC Global Positioning System,” the report read.
The helicopter, belonging to Quorum Aviation, had been traveling into Lagos from Port Harcourt, the Rivers state capital.
The investigation is still ongoing, the accident agency said.
