Lagos Helicopter Crash: Investigators Engages Julius Berger Nigeria on Black Box Recovery

The Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB) said yesterday that it was yet to recover the Flight Data Recorder (FDR) and Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR), otherwise known as Black Box, from the wreckage of the Bristow Helicopter that plunged into Lagos Lagoon on Wednesday.


The chopper was returning from an  offshore oil platform belonging to Sedco.

The commissioner of the AIB, Dr Felix Abali, said the investigators of the accident had engaged construction giant Julius Berger Nigeria Limited to assist with the recovery of the equipment- CVR  and FDR – which are vital for investigation.

Besides, he said the AIB would require Bristow’s cooperation to inform the victims’families of the crash before the passenger manifest could be released.

He said though the AIB had a copy of the passenger manifest, it must observe International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) rules before releasing the passenger manifest.

Abali said very soon the AIB would release a preliminary accident report subject to the pace of its investigations.

The AIB had collected the transcript of the conversation between the pilots and the control tower of the Lagos Airport.

He said the chopper had 12 people on board and that it was carrying the number of passengers prescribed by its manufacturers.

Abali said :”We have a copy of the manifest , but a lot of protocol is involved to release it to the public . We have to inform the families involved – in line with standard international procedures .”