Helicopter crash occurs due to a thunderstorm

To: Mr. Banerjee, senior in the aerial rescue department

From: Mark Johnson, team leader for group A3

Date: 1 September 2021

Subject: Helicopter crash occurs due to a thunderstorm in a rescue operation

On 31 August 2021, at 6:00 pm, my crew and I were on a rescue operation to airlift an injured seaman when we met with a tragic accident. We could not complete the mission due to extreme weather conditions, causing the pilot to turn around and discontinue the mission midway. Our helicopter crashed after lightning struck it and our equipment malfunctioned.

Visibility was extremely low due to torrential downpours in the Pacific. We crashed in the water, limiting the damage, but our chopper was sinking. I felt around and searched for the exit, not inflating my life jacket before escaping lest I got stuck. I found two of my crewmates: the pilot and his assistant but was not able to locate the other three.

We assessed, evaluated, and reflected on the situation. We had crashed due to the thunderstorm, did not know our location or whether the other three crewmates were alive. We were exhausted trying to stay afloat in the strong waves, so decided to stay there and wait for help to arrive.

At dawn, I spotted a fishing boat and blew the whistle on my life jacket to attract it. The fishermen took us to a jetty, from where a waiting ambulance transported us to a hospital. Our conditions were stable despite having chemical burns on our bodies due to staying immersed for too long in caustic aviation turbine fuel which had leaked from the hapless helicopter. The other three crewmates are still missing because of poor weather conditions.

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