Wednesday, May 7, 2025 - The United States National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has released its final report on the helicopter crash that claimed the lives of Herbert Wigwe, his wife, his son, and his friend Abimbola Ogunbanjo, concluding that the accident was primarily caused by pilot error and inadequate company oversight.
In the investigation report, the NTSB determined that the
crash resulted from "the pilot’s decision to continue the visual flight
rules flight into instrument meteorological conditions, which resulted in the
pilot’s spatial disorientation and loss of control." The crash occurred on
February 9, 2024, near the California-Nevada border, involving a helicopter
registered as N130CZ. The incident killed all six occupants, including Wigwe,
the former group chief executive officer of Access Holdings Plc; his wife, Doreen;
their first son, Chizi; and Abimbola Ogunbanjo, former chairman of Nigerian
Exchange Group Plc.
According to the NTSB, the pilot "likely experienced
spatial disorientation while maneuvering the helicopter in IMC, which led to
his loss of helicopter control and the resulting collision with terrain."
The report also cited "the company’s inadequate oversight of its safety
management processes" as a contributing factor. Specifically, it noted
that the helicopter operator failed to ensure pilots were accurately completing
flight risk analyses, logging maintenance discrepancies, and adhering to Part
135 flight regulations.
The report revealed critical lapses in maintenance
communication prior to the crash. "During the return flight, the pilot
texted the director of maintenance (DOM) about the issue. After arriving at the
company’s flight operations base, the pilot discussed the issue with the
company flight follower (who was also the company’s president). A company
mechanic performed some troubleshooting on the radar altimeter; however, he was
unable to rectify the issue, and the radar altimeter remained non-functional,"
the report stated.
It further disclosed that "the mechanic reported that
the pilot and the DOM were aware that the radar altimeter was not functioning,
yet they departed at 1822 on the positioning flight to pick up the
passengers."
"About 40 minutes later, the positioning flight landed
at the airport to pick up the charter passengers. After arrival, the pilot and
flight follower had a phone conversation and exchanged text messages, but they
did not discuss the status of the radar altimeter or weather conditions."
The NTSB concluded that poor judgment in continuing the
flight under deteriorating weather conditions, along with the operator’s
failure to enforce critical safety protocols, ultimately led to the fatal
crash.
0 Comments