The United States National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has concluded that the helicopter crash that killed former Access Holdings CEO Herbert Wigwe, his wife, son, and three others was caused by pilot error resulting from spatial disorientation.
In its final report, released on Wednesday, the NTSB also criticized the helicopter company for “inadequate oversight of its safety management processes.”
This conclusion follows the NTSB’s investigation into the February 2024 helicopter crash.
A preliminary report had indicated that the helicopter, registered as N130CZ, crashed while operating under visual flight rules, which transitioned into instrument meteorological conditions, necessitating different flight procedures and instruments.
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According to the final report, investigators determined that the “probable cause of this accident to be: the pilot’s decision to continue the visual flight rules flight into instrument meteorological conditions, which resulted in the pilot’s spatial disorientation and loss of control.”
The crash, which occurred near the California-Nevada border on February 9, 2024, resulted in the deaths of all six occupants, including Wigwe, his wife Doreen, their son Chizi, and Abimbola Ogunbanjo, the former group chairman of Nigerian Exchange Group Plc.
The US accident investigators further found that the helicopter company failed to ensure that pilots adequately completed flight risk analyses, documented maintenance issues, and adhered to required regulations before takeoff.
“The pilot likely experienced spatial disorientation while manoeuvring the helicopter in IMC [instrument meteorological conditions], which led to his loss of helicopter control and the resulting collision with terrain,” the report stated.
A significant finding of the investigation was that the helicopter’s radar altimeter was not working before the fatal flight.
The report revealed that the pilot had texted the maintenance director about a problem with this crucial instrument during an earlier flight.
The report detailed, “A company mechanic performed some troubleshooting on the radar altimeter; however, he was unable to rectify the issue, and the radar altimeter remained non-functional. The mechanic reported that the pilot and the DOM [director of maintenance] were aware that the radar altimeter was not functioning, yet they departed at 1822 on the positioning flight to pick up the passengers. The investigation further found that after arriving to collect the charter passengers, the pilot and flight follower exchanged messages but ‘did not discuss the status of the radar altimeter or weather conditions.'”
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