News / Crown Office seeks helicopter black box
SCOTLAND’S Lord Advocate is seeking to obtain the black box recorder from last year’s fatal helicopter crash just off Sumburgh.
Three men and a woman died after their Super Puma helicopter, carrying a total of 18 people, ditched into the sea on 23 August last year.
As part of its investigation into the incident, the Crown Office has petitioned the Court of Session for release of the EC225’s cockpit voice recorder. It is currently held by the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB).
The unusual legal move comes only two days after a memorial service was held at Sumburgh Airport to mark the first anniversary of the crash.
Duncan Munro, 45, from Bishop Auckland, Sarah Darnley, 45, from Elgin, Gary McCrossan, 59, from Inverness and George Allison, 57, from Winchester, all lost their lives.
The incident prompted widespread concerns about helicopter safety within the offshore oil industry. It was the fourth accident of its kind in the space of five years.
On Tuesday, a Crown Office spokesman said: “Following a helicopter crash off Sumburgh on 23 August 2013, the Crown Office began an investigation into the cause of the deaths.
“The investigation is ongoing and the families of those who died will continue to be updated in relation to any significant developments.”
An AAIB spokesman said regulations “allow for the release of this type of information if a court decides it is in the public interest to do so. The court has yet to make its decision in this case.”
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