The cockpit voice recorder (CVR) of YSR's Bell 430 twin-engine helicopter may be flown to the US to decode the recorded conversations of the pilot before the chopper crashed into Nallamalla forest in Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh.
The CVR was retrieved from the crash site and brought to the Delhi office of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). “The decision to take the CVR to its manufacture in US will be taken on Tuesday” a senior DGCA official said.
The DGCA investigation hinges on the CVR, which will throw light on the cause of the crash. The government has formed a panel to investigate the incident. The panel is headed by RK Tyagi, chairman and managing director of Pawan Hans Helicopters, and comprises captain Irshad Ahmad, also from Pawan Hans, and Sanjay Bramhane and Maneesh Kumar, both from the DGCA.
DGCA sources said the CVR was installed in the helicopter to record conversations during flight time for post-accident investigations. Sources said the CVR was damaged. “The CVR got damaged due to the explosion that took place after the helicopter hit a hillock. The CVR has to be handled delicately lest the tapes are damaged,” the official said.
The DGCA team also recovered some more avionics of the damaged chopper. But it has failed to find another crucial component, Emergency Location Transmitter (ELT).
According to the DGCA's rule, every helicopter must have this device. “The purpose of this device is to ensure speed tracking of helicopters in case of emergency landing or crashes. The device has a battery and it emits signals to all aircraft flying over it,” the official said.
