Human error caused chopper crash: army

Army Aviation Forces Lieutenant General Wang Kuo-chiang points to a picture detailing the cause of the crash of an Army UH-1H helicopter in a remote mountain region in Kaohsiung County last Tuesday at a press conference held at the Ministry of National Defense yesterday. PHOTO: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEI TIMES

The crash of an Army UH-1H helicopter in a remote mountain region in Kaohsiung County on Tuesday last week were caused primarily by human error, a senior military officer said yesterday.

"Our pilots could not react fast enough when the helicopter was suddenly caught in bad weather and [the pilot] did not change course immediately. These were the main reasons for the crash," commander for the Army's Aviation Forces Lieutenant General Wang Kuo-chiang (王國強) told a press conference.

The helicopter struck a radio tower and crashed onto Chungliao Second Road, killing all eight officers on board. No one on the ground was injured.

Quoting an investigation report by a special military team, Wang said at the conference that the tragedy could be attributed to a combination of factors, including the pilot's failure to gauge the height of the tower, the crew's inadequate emergency response skills and the pilot's failure to alter the helicopter's course or return to base when weather conditions suddenly worsened.

Wang and Army Commander-in-Chief General Chao Shih-chang (趙世璋) will face administrative punishment for the accident.

In light of the tragedy, the Army also announced yesterday that chief officers and their deputies would no longer be allowed to travel in the same vehicle or aircraft at the same time.

The ministry also took the opportunity at the press conference yesterday to emphasize the need to purchase new equipment to replace aging machinery.

The UH-1H, for example, will be completely retired before 2018, a statement released by the ministry said.

The statement said all of the Army's M41 tanks had been upgraded to M41D in 1999.

Eight-wheel armed vehicles produced in Taiwan will completely replace current M113 armed vehicles before 2024, it said.

For the Navy, purchasing P-3Cs to replace current S-2Ts and purchasing eight submarines to replace Guppy class vessels that have been in service for more than 60 years, are the Navy's priority.

The plans to upgrade equipment are stuck in the legislature, however, where the pan-blue camp has refused to review the defense budget.

The Navy has no plans to replace its aging MD-500 helicopters, which have been in service for more than 50 years, the statement said.

Additional reporting by CNA