CAA Safety and Airspace Director Mark Swan said
“The oil and gas industry puts considerable
effort into maintaining safe helidecks but in
cases where a helideck doesn’t meet safety
standards there is currently no legal
enforcement process to either shut it down or
demand improvements. The safety of offshore
workers is our absolute priority so we’ve
launched a consultation that would see us
introduce legally binding safety standards for
the 300 plus helidecks in
UK
waters.”
The proposals are primarily aimed at addressing
the causes of accidents to prevent them
happening, a policy that the CAA and its
Offshore Helicopter Safety Action Group (OHSAG)
has followed throughout its work in the area. The
announcement is the latest move to improve
offshore helicopter safety following the CAA’s
comprehensive review of offshore helicopter
operations published in February 2014.
Other actions already introduced include:
• Stopping flights over the most extreme sea
conditions.
• Ensuring every passenger on an offshore
helicopter flight is equipped with new improved
Emergency Breathing System (EBS) ahead of
schedule.
• Standardization of pilot training,
particularly for the use of complex automated
systems on helicopters and the associated
operating procedures.
• Establishing a new top level group to drive
change, the Offshore Helicopter Safety Action
Group (OHSAG) that includes unions, industry and
the CAA.
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