Human error seen unlikely in deaths of 2 experienced pilots

Cobras grounded until completion of fatal crash probe.

By YAAKOV KATZ
cobra helicopter 224.88 (photo credit: Courtesy IDF)
cobra helicopter 224.88
(photo credit: Courtesy IDF)
The Israel Air Force's Cobra helicopter squadrons will remain grounded for several weeks until an inquiry into Wednesday night's helicopter crash in the North is completed, Brig.-Gen. Gabi Shahor, commander of the Palmahim Air Force Base, said Thursday. The helicopter that crashed on Wednesday took off from the Ramat David Base, near Nazareth, at 6:40 p.m. together with another helicopter. Both aircraft were fully armed since they were deployed as the IAF's first-response team along the Lebanese border. The helicopter flew for seven minutes before one of the pilots reported that he was making an emergency landing. Before the second craft turned around, the first was already on the ground, engulfed in flames. Pilot Major (res.) Shai Danor and navigator Maj. (res.) Yuval Holtzman, 40, a father of three from Matan, were dead. Shahor visited the crash site on Thursday. Based on the initial findings there, it appears that the aircraft may have fallen apart in midair. He said a technical failure likely caused the main rotor to disconnect in midair. If the tail rotor had dislodged, he said, it would have still been possible to land the aircraft. "There is no chance, however, when the main rotor falls off," he said. The helicopter's video recording tape was discovered at the crash site and sent to a laboratory to try to retrieve the data. IAF commander Maj.-Gen. Ido Nehushtan has set up a team to investigate the crash, headed by an experienced helicopter pilot. Shahor said the investigation could take several weeks. The IAF contacted Bell Helicopter - the manufacturer of the aircraft - and a representative was already at the scene on Thursday. While the IAF had yet to rule out any possibility, Shahor said it was unlikely that human error had caused the crash. "Both pilots were very experienced," he said, adding that both had flown in the Second Lebanon War as well as in operations in the Gaza Strip. The squadron received a citation of excellence for its operations during the 2006 war, when it logged the most flight hours of any IAF squadron.