Investigators still do not know cause of fatal helicopter crash
Investigators into the collision of two helicopters on Tuesday still do not know what caused the accident. The owner of the two aircraft said he believed the setting sun may have dazzled the Swiss pilot who died in the crash, along with seven Indians.
An official from the Swiss Office for Aircraft Accident Investigations said on Wednesday preliminary investigations are still under way and the reasons behind the accident, the worst of its type in Switzerland, remained unclear. Pilot error has not been ruled out, despite earlier reports to the contrary.
He said they were now trying to get a clearer picture of what happened, and were concentrating on questioning as many eyewitnesses as possible. The official also said first results were unlikely to be available in the coming days.
The owner of Air-Glaciers and operator of the two helicopters, Bruno Bagnoud, said he believed the dead pilot was blinded by the setting sun and could not avoid an accident. The pilot had worked for Air-Glaciers for 10 years and had 4,700 flight hours.
The other pilot has confirmed the sun did not bother him.
The collision occurred as the two helicopters, a Bell Jet Ranger and an Alouette III, both belonging to the Air-Glaciers company, were coming in to land on the football field in Beuson, a village near the town of Sion in canton Valais.
The aircraft had just completed a five-minute sightseeing tour above the surrounding Alps for the Indian tourists. The crash was witnesses by about 60 other Indians, who had already had their turn.
Eyewitnesses said the helicopters moved very close to each other as they were hovering about 15 metres above the field. They said they fell to the ground after their rotor blades touched.
All six passengers and the Swiss pilot on board the Bell Jet Ranger died. One tourist on board the Alouette was killed in the crash, while the other three passengers and the pilot escaped with injuries.
R.L. Negi, head of the chancellery at the Indian embassy in Berne, said the Indians injured in the crash were all out of danger. He said two would have to remain in hospital in Sion to be treated, one for a fractured ankle, the other with fractured ribs.
Two of the injured were from Bombay and one from Delhi.
Negi said all the victims were part of a group of about 20 travelling in Europe on a tour organised by the company, Orbit. He said they had visited Expo 2000 in the German city of Hanover, before travelling to Switzerland.
Negi said five of those who died are from the town of Ahmedabat in Gujarat state, two were from Delhi and one came from Kanpur.
Indian diplomats were dispatched from Berne and Geneva to help the Swiss authorities formally identify the victims, before the bodies are flown back to India. A police spokesman said the identifications were completed on Wednesday.
In Beuson, investigators and rescue officials have begun removing the debris from the two aircraft. They said the field would remain sealed off until environmental experts had evaluated the damage caused by the spillage of about 100 litres of kerosene onto the pitch, and decided what measures to take.
The body of the pilot who was killed has been taken to Lausanne for an autopsy. The Indian victims were six men and one woman, but no more is known about their age.
swissinfo with agencies
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