2004 GULF OF MEXICO OFFSHORE

SAFETY STATISTICS

1999 Stats

2000 Stats
2001 Stats
2002 Stats
2003 Stats

1998 E & P FORUM WORLD-WIDE OIL INDUSTRY HELICOPTER OPERATIONS AND SAFETY REVIEW
1999 E & P FORUM WORLD-WIDE OIL INDUSTRY HELICOPTER OPERATIONS AND SAFETY REVIEW
2000 E & P FORUM WORLD-WIDE OIL INDUSTRY HELICOPTER OPERATIONS AND SAFETY REVIEW
2001 E & P FORUM WORLD-WIDE OIL INDUSTRY HELICOPTER OPERATIONS AND SAFETY REVIEW

2004

HELICOPTER SAFETY ADVISORY CONFERENCE (HSAC) GULF OF MEXICO OFFSHORE HELICOPTER OPERATIONS AND SAFETY REVIEW

HSAC Members:

March 3, 2005

Please find attached the Helicopter Safety Advisory Conference (HSAC) "2004 Gulf of Mexico Offshore Helicopter Operations and Safety Review". The membership support and response from 22 helicopter operators for this review is not only appreciated, but vital in establishing a meaningful report. Continued support is encouraged for the future.

The 2004 Gulf of Mexico oil industry helicopter accident rate per 100,000 flight hours was 2.77 with a total of 10 accidents (9 single engine, 1 medium twin) compared to a 21-year annual average accident rate of 1.88 with a total of 9.1 accidents/year. The fatal accident rate per 100,000 flight hours during 2004 was 1.11 with a total of 4 fatal accidents (15 fatalities) compared to a 21-year average of 0.71 with a total of 2.8 fatal accidents/year.

This was the worst year for fatalities in the 21 years since we began gathering data. The 4 fatal accidents were caused by: 2 unknown (1 at night), 1 each helideck obstacle strike and controlled flight into water.

During 2004, improper pilot procedures and technical fault each accounted for 4 (40%) or 8 of the 10 accidents. 2 accidents have an unknown final cause and 2 occurred at night.

In the last 5 years, there have been 48 accidents of which 16 were fatal (33%), resulting in 32 fatalities and 40 injuries. 25 (52%) of these accidents were due to pilot procedure related causes and 14 (29%) were due to technical fault. For technical accidents, there were the 9 engine related events, 4 tail rotor events, a 1 main drive shaft failure. 13 of the 48 accidents (27%) were related to events around the helideck (5 each loss of control and obstacle strikes, 2 passenger control, and 1 tie-down removal). The specific leading causes of accidents in the last 5 years have been:

h 9 (19%) engine related - with 4 fatalities

h 8 (17 %) loss of control or improper procedure with 1 fatality

h 5 (10%) controlled flight into terrain or water - 2 occurred at night - with 8 fatalities

h 4 (8%) helideck obstacle strikes with 4 fatalities

h 3 (6%) tail rotor failures

h 3 (6%) fuel management

h 3 (6%) loose cargo striking tail rotor

h 3 (6%) unknown causes with 12 fatalities (1 night with 10 fatalities)

h 3 (6%) fuel quality control

Note - Although night flight accounts for less than 3% of the GoM flight hours, in the last five years, the 4 night accidents accounted for 8% of the total accidents and 38% of total fatalities (12 of 32 total). 3 of the 4 events were fatal.

HSAC has published a number of Recommended Practices to address these issues and they can be reviewed at www.HSAC.org. We are optimistic that by sharing this information with all operators and other oil industry group's, safety initiatives may be developed and implemented to reduce accidents and incidents.

Bob Williams

Industry Liaison Committee Member

GULF OF MEXICO OFFSHORE HELICOPTER OPERATIONAL DATA SUMMARY

YEAR	TYPE HELICOPTER					PASSENGERS CARRIED	HOURS FLOWN	NUMBER OF FLIGHTS
YEAR	SINGLE ENGINE	LIGHT TWIN	MEDIUM TWIN	HEAVY TWIN	TOTAL FLEET	PASSENGERS CARRIED	HOURS FLOWN	NUMBER OF FLIGHTS
2000	385	76	106	15	582	3,451,511	441,908	1,394,679
2001	407	87	121	17	632	3,127,449	451,712	1,473,057
2002	411	77	121	16	625	3,088,865	402,632	1,564,362
2003	410	66	118	13	607	2,574,810	381,273	1,345,075
2004*	387	60	100	14	561	2,329,064	361,514	1,270,863

* Data extracted from voluntary input of 22 helicopter operators Gulf of Mexico

GULF OF MEXICO OFFSHORE
HEL ICOPTER OPERATIONAL DATA DETAILS

	HOURS by TYPE HELICOPTER					OPERATIONS (Takeoff/Landings) by TYPE HELICOPTER
YEAR	SINGLE ENGINE	LIGHT TWIN	MEDIUM TWIN	HEAVY TWIN	TOTAL FLEET	SINGLE ENGINE	LIGHT TWIN	MEDIUM TWIN	HEAVY TWIN)	TOTAL FLEET
1999	316,029	38,126	79,736	8,016	441,908	1,051,160	134,035	192,289	17,197	1,394,679
2000	309,429	35,318	96,548	10,417	451,712	1,123,393	125,832	204,285	19,547	1,473,057
2001	284,226	26,610	83,556	8,240	402,632	1,251,945	99,117	195,883	17,417	1,564,362
2003	275,580	22,161	76,948	6,584	381,273	1,102,644	67,399	163,869	11,163	1,345,075
*2004*	263,258	20,436	69,479	8,341	361,514	1,048,858	65,704	144,545	11,756	1,270,863

GULF OF MEXICO HELICOPTER FLEET OPERATIONAL DATA

Averages Per Helicopter	2002	2003	2004	Averages Per Helicopter	2002	2003	2004
Passengers per Day per 5 Day Week	11,880	9,903	8,958	Annual Hours Per Aircraft	644	628	644
Flights Per Day	4,286	3,685	3,482	Flights Per Aircraft	2,503	2,216	2,265
Average Flight Duration in Min.	15	17	17	Passengers Flown Per Year	4,942	4,242	4,152

As a service to the Helicopter Safety Advisory Conference (HSAC) membership, this Gulf of Mexico Offshore Helicopter Statistical Report is compiled annually from information submitted voluntarily by the membership and helicopter operators. The information is neither verified nor reviewed for accuracy and should be treated as unofficial. The data is believed to be representative; however, the HSAC assumes no liability for accuracy or completeness.