IHST Initiative in India B. S. Singh Deo Vice President RWSI
PROFILE OF INDIAN ROTORCRAFT INDUSTRY The Indian Helicopter Scene is no different from the rest of the world. As the global demand for helicopters both for civil & military records a new high, the helicopter industry in India too is growing rapidly. There are around 257 civil registered turbine powered helicopters and over 600 military Helicopters in use. Safety Record of Civil Helicopters in India during the last 20 years has more or less remained below 9 per 100,000 flight hrs. In some years such as 2003 & 2007 the accident rate far exceeded the world average.
SAFETY PERFORMANCE IS INFLUENCED BY EXTREME TEMP & HIGH ALTITUDE Terrain. The terrain is vast and varied. The Himalayas in the North are one of the world s highest mountain range, and extend almost uninterrupted for a distance of 2,500 km. The geography of India is extremely diverse, with landscape ranging from snowcapped mountain ranges to deserts, plains, hills and plateaus. It is prone to several natural disasters, responsible for huge losses in life and property. Weather. High temperatures affect helicopter performance especially at altitudes. Hot & High conditions forces helicopters to operate to its limits.
Growth of Civil Registered First Commercial Helicopter Flight Capt. R. Captain in Hiller UH 12B in Nov 1953 Helicopters Helicopters in both civil & military have been in service of the nation for 57 years. From 1953 to 1986, the commercial use of helicopters in India was limited to small Aviation companies who were involved in communication and crop spraying roles. The formation of Helicopter Corporation of India by the Govt in 1986 (later named Pawan Hans Helicopters Limited) with a fleet of 42 helicopters provided the first boost to the Industry in the country. Since then, the growth of civil registered helicopters has been very modest.
Flight Hour Comparisons of Mumbai, Delhi and others
INDIAN HELICOPTER INDUSTRY Private Category (15 Operators); Fleet Strength (23) Commercial Operators (66 Operators); Fleet Strength (198) Govts. /Semi-Govt. (16 Operators) Fleet Strength (28) Para Military (1 Operator); Fleet Strength (8) Total : 98 Operators, 257 Turbine Helicopters
Market Share of the Fleet by Manufacturer Schweizer
CIVIL HELICOPTER ACCIDENT ANALYSIS BY RWSI
Accident Rate of Civil Helicopters in India (2005-2010)
18 HELICOPTER ACCIDENTS BY CATEGORY (1990-2010) 16 14 12 5 10 8 10 3 6 4 2 1 3 7 3 11 4 4 3 7 0 Loss of Power Structural/ Component Failure Loss of Visual Reference Loss of Control Struck Object Training for Emergencies Other Non-Fatal Accidents Fatal Accidents
Division of Accidents - Human / Non- Human Factor-India (1990-2010) 50 45 44 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 6 8 0 Ground Accident Non Human Factor Human Error
Accident Analysis - Indian Scene RWSI Analysed 58 Civil Helicopter Accidents from FY 1990 to 2010. CFIT accounted for 10 accidents. In all the ten accidents analysed, the pilot lost situational awareness and inadvertently flew into water/mountain slopes. CFIT is our major concern
Helicopter Accident by Mission Type Communication flights 30% Mountain Flying 27% Aerial Application 12% Ground 12% Instructional 7% Offshore/over water 12%
Indian Scene Due to a comparatively smaller fleet in India, there were lesser number of accidents. This made it easy for RWSI to carry out accident analysis and initiate mitigation strategies. Many of these initiatives are under implementation. Human Factor was a major cause of the accidents. Of total of 23 fatal accidents,10 were related to CFIT. CFIT accidents were due to pilot judgment errors, thus we need to improve pilot decision making process. Skill based errors and violations of safety norms have also been major contributing factors to CFIT accidents. With rapidly growing civil helicopter fleet, we are concerned about lack of training facilities for pilots.
Human Factors Analysis There have been 10 fatal CFIT accidents to civil helicopters in India during 1990 to 2009. All of them were caused by human errors. All elements of human errors including decision errors ( thinking errors), skill based errors ( doing errors), perceptual errors (errors arise when sensory input is degraded) and violations of safety norms were found. Routine violations are habitual by nature and were enabled by a system of supervision and management that tolerated such departures from the rules. Exceptional violations were isolated departures from authority, neither typical of the individual nor condoned by authority.
JHSAT(INDIA) INVESTIGATION FINDINGS Of the 58 Civil Helicopter accidents that occurred during Jun 90 to Sep 10: In 52% accidents, there were no injuries In 14 % accidents, crew / passengers suffered serious injuries 34% accidents were fatal killing 99 crew members/passengers
Type of Operators Involved in Accidents State Govt 18% NSOP 47% 47% 9% 18% 26% Private Operators 9% PSUs (PHHL, Vayudoot & HAL) 26%
Accident to Civil Helicopters (1990-2009) at Various Phases of Flight
Single/ Multi Engine Accidents 70 60 50 40 Piston Engine Turbine Engine 30 6 Piston Engine 58 20 28 10 Turbine Engine 24 0 Single Engine Twin Engine Total Accidents
Helicopter Accident Month wise Trend Analysis
Progress Report Accidents in Year 2003 were taken into account for JHSAT Analysis Outcome of JHSAT (India) Analysis Graphical representation on the frequency of standard problem statements Graphical representation on the frequency of intervention strategies Interventions Recommended by JHSAT are under implementation by JHSIT
SUMMARY OF STANDARD PROBLEM STATEMENTS
Frequency of occurrence ACCIDENT WISE ANALYSIS OF STANDARD PROBLEM STATEMENTS
CAUSE & ROLE WISE PROBLEM FREQUENCY Frequency of occurrence
SUMMARY OF INTERVENTIONS RECOMMENDED
ACCIDENT WISE PROBLEM FREQUENCY Frequency of occurrence
GROUP WISE FREQUENCY OF INTERVENTION Frequency of occurrence
OUTCOME OF IHSS-2009 Based on the analysis done, there was unanimous agreement that the prime requirement for all helicopter operators in the world is to implement a safety management system and develop & install low-cost flight-data monitoring systems in helicopters. It is hoped that through monitoring flights, flaws in standardization, operational procedures, and training can be corrected to improve safety of operation. Helicopter operators in India too should not lag behind in voluntarily imbibing the IHST recommendations in brining down the accident rate and re-establish the fact that helicopters are a safe & efficient mode of point to point transportation.
MAJOR INITIATIVE Based on the finding that SAFETY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (SMS) could be a major mitigating strategy for arresting the high rate of accidents to Helicopters in India, RWSI has started conducting training capsules for the Industry since August 2009.The Regulator too is keen to introduce SMS as a standard practice within the aviation community in India as a major safety initiative. Regular SMS Training is being held by RWSI which can be availed by helicopter operators in the Region.
MITIGATION STRATEGIES RECOMMENDED BY JHSAT(INDIA) under Implementation by JHSIT(India) SAFETY MANAGEMENT (31 Interventions in 5 Accidents) Review present flight requirement standards and minimum requirements laid down in the op manual by the operators with a view to minimize risks. Improve SAFETY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (SMS) SOPS Flight Ops Management Safety awareness programs are to be stepped up for all the operators. Safety training and education at all levels.
MITIGATION STRATEGIES RECOMMENDED BY JHSAT(INDIA) Offshore Operations Performance Class I to be introduced for all offshore helicopter flights Periodical Audit of offshore equipment for Enhancing safety standards HUET Training of all personnel Encourage Third Party safety audit done of off shore Rigs / Platforms periodically. Irrespective of the fleet size, operator must have helicopter qualified professionals as ops managers to oversee compliance to the operating norms laid down especially for offshore op.
MITIGATION STRATEGIES RECOMMENDED BY JHSAT(INDIA) Training (16 interventions in 5 accidents) Simulator-based training should be redefined based on the type used. Encourage use of synthetic, simulator-based training, especially for auto rotations. Special VFR Capsules & proficiency checks should be extended to even Instrument Rated pilots. Recurrent / refresher / CRM Training for helicopter pilots should be redefined. Avail OEM designated instructors to carry out standardization flights with various pilots across the country. Emphasis should be laid on high quality basic training in IFR on IFR equipped helicopter even at the basic flying training institutions.
MITIGATION STRATEGIES RECOMMENDED BY JHSAT(INDIA) Regulatory (12 Interventions in 2 Accidents) Increased vigilance by regulator in terms of audit / surveillance check of small operators need to be laid down. DGCA should address rule-breaking and establish a programme for voluntary reporting. Audit Processes Training standards should be verified by audit process. Proficiency monitoring standards and IR tests should be verified by audit process. Proficiency monitoring checks on AME s should be verified by audit process. (With special emphasis on Maintenance)
MITIGATION STRATEGIES RECOMMENDED BY JHSAT(INDIA) DGCA has made SMS mandatory SAFETY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (SMS) Training Capsule was introduced on 18-19 August 2009 to help helicopter operators to take accident reduction initiative. So far 4 capsules have been conducted in this regard.
OUTREACH Towards enhancing Safety Awareness Among Helicopter Pilots holding CHPL/ALTP (H), RWSI has conducted recurrent training inclusive of CRM & Accident Analysis for 703 pilots since 2007. Towards enhancing Safety Awareness Among Stakeholders of the Industry especially Exploration & Production Agencies, RWSI conducted two National Seminars on Health, Safety & Environment at Mumbai on 12 Jan 07 & 4 Jul 09. Implementation of Recommendations of the participants to improve the safety ambience in offshore ops is underway.
OUTREACH Towards Enhancing Safety of Offshore Operations, RWSI has carried out Safety Audit of helidecks at offshore Rigs for various E & P operators. For better compliance of Regulatory Safety Norms, RWSI has handled number of Safety Audits for helicopter operators. For reducing CFIT Accidents, RWSI carried out a national workshop for helicopter pilots in Delhi on 4 Jun 10.
OUTREACH For enhancing awareness of aircrew to known hazards and reduce risk of accidents, safety posters on known hazards have been distributed to operators. For enhancing awareness of users including politicians to known hazards and assist operators in compliance of safety norms and reduce risk of accidents, guide books prepared by RWSI have been distributed to major users.
INITIATIVES BY RWSI TOWARDS ENHANCING PUBLIC IMAGE A workshop was conducted by RWSI & Pacific Aviation Media Association (APAMA) at New Delhi on 15 th September 2010 to Project Helicopter as a Safe & Efficient Mode for Point to Point Travel. The aim of this briefing was to stress to the media the importance of accurate reporting of helicopter accidents.
Other Activities HAL-CAE Simulator Complex in Bangalore has offered 1 hr exposure to Inadvertent entry into IMC free of cost till 31 Dec 2010. RWSI has been nominated as member of the National Safety Council set up by the Ministry of Civil Aviation.
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