N.L. chopper crash widow assails companies

The wife of one of the 17 people killed in a Cougar helicopter crash off Newfoundland in March says companies linked to the disaster could have done more to prevent it.

'He did not have to die in such a horrific way'

Mark Quinn · CBC News · Posted: Feb 10, 2010 6:17 AM EST | Last Updated: February 10, 2010

Sharon Pike speaks at the inquiry into offshore helicopter safety in St. John's on Wednesday. ((CBC))

The wife of one of the 17 people who died in a helicopter crash off the coast of Newfoundland in March is speaking out against the companies she believes could have done more to prevent the disaster.

"Paul would want me to say what is in my heart," Sharon Pike said about Paul Pike, 49, who was on Cougar Flight 491, during her address Wednesday to an inquiry in St. John's that is looking into the crash.

"Paul would want me to say to the manufacturer of the helicopter, to the operator of the helicopter and the oil companies, that he did not have to lose his life on the morning of March 12, 2009. He did not have to die in such a horrific way," said Pike.

"If these companies had acted on the warning they had when this helicopter was forced to land in Australia in July 2008 and fixed the problem with the gearbox immediately, Paul would be with me and his children today."

Transportation Safety Board of Canada investigators discovered broken mounting studs on part of the main gearbox of the Sikorsky S-92A operated by Cougar Helicopters Inc. when they started their examination of the wreckage last March.

The Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation had been aware of problems with the mounting studs. On Jan. 28, 2009, the U.S. manufacturer issued an alert saying titanium mounting studs should be replaced by steel studs on every helicopter within a year, or within 1,250 flight hours. This followed the malfunction on an S92-A in Australia in the summer of 2008.

'Privilege of knowing him'

Pike, accompanied by her two children, told the inquiry her husband, from Shearstown, N.L., "was a very private man who died in a very public way.

"I want people to remember him for the way he was, not how he died. If you had the privilege of knowing him, you would be proud to call him a friend. Words can't express the devastation and loss my family feels."

Pike reached out to the families of the crew flying the helicopter. "To the families of Capt. Matthew Davis and first officer Timothy Lanouette, we know they did everything humanly possible to bring all passengers on Flight 491 home safely," she said. "Please know that my family truly appreciates the heroic efforts of these two fine men."

Marilyn Nash, the widow of crash victim Burch Nash, was also critical of decisions made before March 12.

"Why did our husbands and a daughter have to die?" she demanded. "They all died because some people decided that fixing this inexpensive part could wait. All the 17 people who died on March 12 should be here."

Nash said her 44-year-old husband had a recurring dream that he was crashing in a helicopter and drowning.

'Fear must have been unbearable'

"All I could think was how he had to feel every time he stepped on that chopper. He had to wonder if today was the day. I truly believe that when the chopper turned around that day Burch knew, this was it, this was the end. The fear must have been unbearable," she said.

"We have three beautiful daughters who should not have to have their wedding days without their father," Nash added. "Telling my children that their dad would not be coming home was absolutely heartbreaking."

Fighting to speak while crying, Burch Nash's daughter, Alicia, also spoke about her father's death.

Alicia Nash and her mother, Marilyn Nash, speak at the inquiry about the death of father and husband Burch Nash in the helicopter crash. ((CBC))

"I lost my supporter, my protector and my best friend," she said. "It's been over 10 months since I lost my father, but it seems like only yesterday that he came into my room to give me a goodbye hug and told me to make him proud. l didn't know those would be the last words I'd hear him say."

She called on the inquiry to ensure a full-time search and rescue helicopter is stationed in St. John's.

Right now St. John's-based Cougar is contracted by oil companies working in Newfoundland's offshore oil fields to provide rescue services.

Cougar has to convert one of its passenger helicopters into a rescue helicopter when it gets a call. Unlike military rescue helicopters based in central Newfoundland, Cougar helicopters can't perform a rescue at night.

Lori Chynn, the widow of John Pelley, of Deer Lake in western Newfoundland, said she was reluctant to speak at the inquiry.

"My husband, a very proud, intelligent, articulate man, was known for speaking up for what he believed in. John gives me the strength to be here today," she said Wednesday.

She also criticized Cougar for not replacing potentially faulty studs as soon as it knew the parts could cause trouble.

"In my opinion, the decision to fly the helicopters before waiting to replace the studs was a reactive tactic, not a proactive stance."

None of the family members who testified took questions from lawyers or spoke with reporters.

The inquiry, led by retired provincial Supreme Court justice Robert Wells, was established to find ways to make helicopter transportation safer for offshore workers.

The only passenger to survive the crash, Robert Decker, addressed the inquiry on Nov. 5.

The 17 people killed were: