Helicopter Crashes into Crane in London

[MCBR]

A helicopter has crashed into a crane at a building site in central London.

[MCBR]

Video of the crash from distance.

[chefbob09]

30m ceiling due to fog and this retard decides to go flying

[kellyhound]

Wonder what height is allowed to fly over town.

[gatagato]

Strict rules govern the flying of helicopters in central London, a stretch of airspace that some pilots described as among the most closely monitored in the world.

A "notice to airmen" was issued just last week warning of a newly erected crane on the Thames skyline alongside The Tower – the crane the helicopter that crashed in Vauxhall on Wednesday is believed to have struck.

The crane was reportedly hidden by cloud.

Battersea heliport, which serves central London, is less than half a mile from the scene of the crash.

Helicopters are generally only permitted to fly on strict routes over central London, in the controlled airspace up to 800 metres (2,500ft). Flights within the London Control Zone must get air traffic control clearance and comply with instructions from controllers.

One pilot, Gary Slater, told the BBC "it is a very controlled area, probably one of the safest in the world in my opinion".

In certain restricted zones, including the City of London and around Hyde Park, only police and emergency services craft are routinely allowed to fly, although others – particularly broadcast helicopters – can obtain permission to do so. The Vauxhall site appears to be on the borders of this zone.


The CAA rules say the onus is on pilots to navigate by sight around built up areas and to be sure of visibility. Witness reports from experienced pilots suggest that visibility around The Tower, which is still under construction, was only around 200 metres, with the summit and the crane the helicopter is believed to have struck shrouded in cloud.

The CAA says helicopter routes have been selected to provide maximum safety by avoiding builtup areas as much as possible.

All helicopters flying within the London Control Zone are subject to minimum visibility rules. To minimise noise nuisance, pilots are told to fly as high as their air traffic control clearance and prevailing cloud conditions allow. Pilots are told to fly precise routes and avoid "corner cutting".

Above all, normal rules of the air mean pilots should not fly "closer than 500 feet to any person, vessel, vehicle or structure".

However, multi-engine helicopters are given more scope to fly away from the designated helicopter routes with air traffic control clearance. The Agusta 109, the model reported to have crashed, is a twin-engine helicopter.

A notice to airmen was issued on 7 January warning of a 770ft crane erected in Vauxhall, lit at night, as an obstacle on the City routes and approach to Battersea heliport.

[Exia Drgn]

At around 8am on the 16th of January, Two people were killed and around six injured when this helicopter struck the arm of a crane. It's suspected that a mix of poor visibility and flight plan diversions caused the accident.

This -is- just first post, go easy. <3

[LERK]

someone posted in current events section but otherwise good post.

[icheerthebull]

The final decision on flying is down to him, there was a lot of fog this morning. My guess is he said he wouldn't fly and was told by the bosses lording over him "fly or find yourself another job" won't come out in a inquest though, must always blame the working man

[jbell0129]

nice

[Sharon]

This happened very near where we live, about 15 min away. Thank God it didn't come down in a heavily populated shopping area!