HEALTH & SAFETY REPORT 2013
page 23
4 Offshore Helicopter Transport Safety Record
4.1 Background
Since 1976, the CAA has collected commercial air transport helicopter flight statistics and reportable accident
data for UKCS offshore operations under its Mandatory Occurrence Reporting (MOR) scheme. During this
37-year period up to year-end 2012, more than 62 million passengers have been transported to and from
offshore installations on the UKCS, with over 7.25 million flights made (sectors flown), consuming nearly 3.5
million flying hours. Regrettably, during this period, 12 fatal accidents have claimed the lives of 115 offshore
workers and flight crew. There have been 60 non-fatal accidents.
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To provide a report that is representative of today’s offshore flight operations using a fleet of modern
helicopters, data from 1992 to 2012 have been used for comparative purposes. With this in mind and as a
measure of current UKCS activity, in 2012, just over 141,000 sectors were flown, consuming 86,000 flight
hours and transporting over a million passengers offshore. Since 1992, six fatal accidents have claimed the
lives of 47 offshore workers and flight crew and there have been 18 non-fatal accidents.
4.2 Current Helicopter Types
At the end of 2012, the UKCS helicopter fleet numbered 90 aircraft and comprised a mix of airframe types.
Figure 11: Current Helicopter Types used for UKCS Offshore Oil and Gas Support
Type
Weight Class
Introduced
In Fleet
Sikorsky S61
Heavy
Pre 1975
2
Eurocopter AS365 (Dauphin)
Medium
1979
6
Sikorsky S76
Medium
1980
8
Eurocopter AS332 (Super Puma)
Heavy
1982
17
Eurocopter EC225
Heavy
2005
21
Sikorsky S92
Heavy
2005
20
AgustaWestland AW139
Medium
2005
13
Eurocopter EC155
Medium
2007
3
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A complete listing of the 72 reportable accidents involving helicopters serving the UK
offshore oil and gas sector from 1976 to 2012 is provided in an appendix on the Oil & Gas UK
website at:
