GROUND PUMA HELICOPTERS

RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: november/december 2012 :: RMTnews 4 R MT has called for the immediate grounding of all Eurocopter-manufactured helicopters that are fitted with the “bevel gear vertical shaft arrangement” after another Puma EC 225 helicopter ditched near Shetland. The call follows the publication of an air accident report which said the ditching on October 22 was caused by a serious mechanical failure in the gearbox. A special bulletin issued by the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) said that the main and standby oil pumps were not working. All those on board the Super Puma EC 225 were rescued safely after it ditched during a flight from Aberdeen to the West Phoenix rig, west of Shetland. The French company admitted that problem was similar to one which caused a helicopter to ditch in the North Sea in May. RMT offshore regional organiser Jake Molloy said that a catastrophic gear box failure on a different type of Eurocopter-manufactured Super Puma aircraft in 2009 killed 16 people. “Then in May this year a Bond-operated Eurocopter EC 225 helicopter was forced to ditch in the sea after instruments indicated the oil system had failed,” he said. He said that in the two ditchings this year weather conditions played a significant part in ensuring everyone escaped alive. “Had conditions been even ‘moderate’ the risk of the helicopters rolling and preventing fast and early evacuation inevitably increase and we have been extremely lucky not to have had any fatalities in either of these incidents. “We can no longer rely on luck,” he said. The AAIB said that the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the manufacturer were urgently reviewing the effectiveness and scope of an airworthiness directive previously issued for this helicopter type. Flights by other aircraft of the same type have been halted. Two North Sea search and rescue Super Pumas operated by BP have been restricted to "life- saving" operations only in the wake of the incident. The Jigsaw service uses the L2 type of aircraft - similar to the one involved in the latest incident. BP said that it was looking at bringing in Sikorsky aircraft to provide temporary cover while the industry examines the evidence from the CHC-operated Super Puma ditching. R MT signallers in the Stirling area took further strike action recently in a long- running dispute over rosters. For months RMT has attempted to negotiate an agreement with local management over twelve hour rosters. Regretfully, despite considerable efforts by RMT’s local reps, management refuse to budge and give in to our call for the 12-hour rosters which all members in the Stirling area want and which will deliver a safe and efficient service. RMT general secretary Bob Crow said that management should be in no doubt of as to the union’s determination to achieve 12-hour rosters for our members. “A 100 per cent vote for strike action plus a near 100 per cent vote in favour of a 12-hour roster system cannot and should not be ignored. “This dispute has been on- going for many months and it is a tribute to the determination and solidarity of RMT members that they have stood firm and are now geared up to support the next period of action which will be the first of a series of strikes,” he said. R MT has demanded urgent action over staffing levels in Overhead Line depots in Scotland after a de-wirement on the West Coast Main Line between Lockerbie and Carstairs led to severe delays and exposed a serious shortage of safety critical OHL staff. RMT has found that Network Rail is often running the three OHL depots in Scotland with wholly inadequate staffing. The union has also raised concerns that the OHL depots do not have the correct machinery and equipment to do all aspects of their important job. RMT general secretary Bob Crow warned that the issue had not been taken seriously and union reps’ approaches had been rejected at every level. “RMT reps have raised concerns that the severe shortage of Overhead Line staff is not only impacting on efficiency and reliability of services but is also compromising safety. “It is a scandal that those justified concerns have been snubbed and treated with nothing less that contempt by managers who should know better. “The de-wirement on the West Coast route was entirely predictable due to the cavalier attitude of the company and exposed the severe shortage of staff on duty that night. “Network Rail has now compounded the problem by bringing in outside agencies to cover in the short-term rather than bolstering the in-house numbers required to do the job of work required in the long term,” he said. GROUND ‘PUMA’ HELICOPTERS SCOTTISH SIGNALLERS STEP UP STRIKE ACTION IN ROSTERS DISPUTE STAFF CUTS COMPROMISE SCOTTISH RAIL SAFETY