Lucky Escape: Instructor Injured as Training Helicopter Crashes in Alberton

A training flight turned into an emergency landing in Alberton on Tuesday when a twin-engine helicopter crashed, leaving its flight instructor with shoulder and upper body injuries. The pilot, however, walked away unharmed in what emergency services have termed a fortunate outcome given the potential severity of such incidents.

The Bell 230 helicopter went down in the Kromvlei area around midday during a training exercise. City of Ekurhuleni Emergency Services spokesperson William Ntladi said responders arrived to find the seven-seater aircraft lying on its side. The injured instructor was treated on scene and transported to a nearby hospital by private ambulance.

Swift Response, Investigation Underway

Ntladi confirmed that the city’s emergency call centre dispatched two fire engines and eleven firefighters promptly after the call was logged just before 2 PM. “Aviation authorities were called to the scene to conduct a crash investigation,” he added, referring the matter to the South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) for a formal probe.

A Recent History of Light Aircraft Incidents

The crash follows another tragic light aircraft accident just last month in the Free State, where a pilot was killed in a solo flight crash near Bloemfontein. That incident is also under investigation by the SACAA’s Accident and Incident Investigations Division.

Tuesday’s Alberton crash serves as a stark reminder of the inherent risks in flight training, even with experienced crews. While the outcome in this case was remarkably non-fatal, the investigation will now focus on determining what caused the helicopter to go down during what should have been a routine training manoeuvre. For the aviation community, it’s another sobering moment underscoring that safety protocols are paramount every single time an aircraft leaves the ground.