Two weeks after the fatal crash of an air ambulance helicopter crash in northern Ontario, ORNGE has temporarily suspended night-time chopper flights to 58 remote sites across the province.
While the cause of the May 31 midnight crash in Moosonee may not be known for many months yet, the air ambulance service says it is taking the actions for “maximum safety.”
“Rotor operations at night are certainly an area where you have to be very vigilant,” Dr. Andrew McCallum, president and chief executive officer of ORNGE, told the Star in an interview.
ORNGE has implemented several changes in the wake of the crash that killed four employees, including suspending night flights to 58 landing sites that involve so-called “black hole” approaches.
Such conditions occur in remote areas where the lack of lighting, such as house and street lights, leave the pilot with few visual cues for their landing, raising the risk of an accident.
“We do know that probably black hole approaches are the biggest challenge for rotor (emergency medical service) pilots,” McCallum said.
Rather than conventional lighting, these 58 helipads are marked by reflective cones that mark the landing site when illuminated by the landing lights of an approaching helicopter.
In the coming weeks, ORNGE chopper pilots will get additional training on landing at reflective cone helipads. As each crew completes the training, they will be allowed to resume flights into these sites. The training is expected to take two weeks ....
