Human remains found in search for Australian Army helicopter that crashed at sea with four crew aboard
The Hindu
Search for Aus. Army heli crash at sea finds human remains but not black box. Rescue op. hampered by bad weather & strong currents. Taipan had been taking part in Talisman Sabre exercise. Fleet of 40 Taipans grounded since crash; gov't plans to replace with 40 U.S. Black Hawks.
The search for an Australian Army helicopter that crashed at sea killing four people during a military exercise with the United States last week found human remains but not the black box crucial to explaining the tragedy, an officer said on August 3.
Retrieving the bodies of the four air crew and the black box flight data recorder have been the main priorities since an MRH-90 Taipan helicopter crashed on July 28 during a nighttime operation in the Whitsunday Islands off the northeast Australian coast.
An underwater drone spotted the human remains and part of the cockpit at a depth of 40 metres (131 feet) on August 2, said Army Lt.-Gen. Greg Bilton, who is coordinating the operation.
“The debris field is consistent with a catastrophic, high impact” with the ocean surface, Lt.-Gen. Bilton told reporters.
The Australian Navy would soon deploy specialised equipment to retrieve the wreckage and remains, he said.
The search and recovery operation, which has involved the U.S. and Canadian militaries, has been hampered by bad weather and strong currents.
Searchers were determined to recover the black box, which contains flight data and cockpit voice recordings.
With a new government in place in Delhi, Singapore hopes to schedule the Ministerial Roundtable with India shortly, says Singapore Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan. In an exclusive interview, he speaks about the impact of the elections on ties, the “missed opportunity” of RCEP and the new buzz around Andhra Pradesh’s capital Amaravati.