A pilot and a crew member of a National Airborne Service Corps (NASC) helicopter died yesterday afternoon after the helicopter crashed into rough seas off Taiwan’s northern coast during post-rescue operations involving a cargo ship.
As of press time last night, the copilot of the AS365 Dauphin helicopter, 46-year-old Chu Yao-chung (朱耀忠), was fighting for his life at Taipei Veterans General Hospital after sustaining serious injuries in the crash.
There were five men on board the helicopter when it crashed into the sea just off the coast of New Taipei City’s Shimen District (石門) in heavy weather at 1:18pm: pilot Lin Chen-hsin (林振興), 47; Chu; aircraft technician Hsu Yi-yang (許翊揚); and two NASC rescue team members, Tsai Tsung-ta (蔡宗達), 34, and Shih Ming-chieh (施銘杰), 33.
Photo: CNA
A rescue operation was launched immediately, involving Coast Guard Administration units and four NASC helicopters, which were able to retrieve the men within 90 minutes.
The dead men have been identified as Lin and Tsai.
The New Taipei City Fire Department said Tsai might have been struck by the helicopter’s rotor.
Photo: CNA
He was sent to the Chinshan (金山) branch of National Taiwan University Hospital, but could not be saved.
Doctors at Taipei Veterans General Hospital said they were doing their best to save Chu, who was suffering from hypothermia from his time in the cold seawater, adding that he has been hooked up to extra-corporeal membrane oxygenation equipment.
The downed helicopter was assisting in post-rescue operations involving a cargo ship belonging to TS Lines Co (德翔海運), which lost power in rough seas on Thursday and ran aground on a shallow reef about 300m offshore with 21 people aboard.
Coast guard ships and NASC helicopters were dispatched to rescue the crew and had evacuated all crew members to land as of Thursday afternoon.
However, the vessel was leaking fuel and the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) dispatched a team of technicians and inspectors to verify the extent of the oil spill and pollution to the coastal area.
The downed helicopter was returning after ferrying EPA technicians to the ship when it was reportedly hit by a high wave and spiraled into the sea.
Premier Simon Chang (張善政) visited the hospitals last night to express the government’s condolences to Lin’s and Tsai’s families.
“We will provide the highest level of compensation for the victims’ families, because they died in line of duty. An investigation will be carried out by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Commission to determine the cause of the accident and the parties responsible for the incident,” Chang said.
Additional reporting by CNA
INCREASED RISK: The Omicron BA.2.75 subvariant has higher immune evasive capacity, but the CECC is more concerned about newer subvariants such as XBB and BQ.1 With the peak season for infectious respiratory diseases coming to an end, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) yesterday said that details of the next phase of lifting COVID-19 masking rules — removing the mask requirement in most indoor settings — are to be announced this week. Discussions on lifting other COVID-19 restrictions are also being held, including further easing border control measures, home isolation requirements and revising the definition for reporting cases, while also downgrading COVID-19 to a lower category of notifiable communicable disease, said Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Victor Wang (王必勝), who heads the CECC. As the daily
CONGRESSIONAL SUPPORT: A new committee would investigate a backlog of US weapons sales to Taiwan, said its chairman, US Representative Mike Gallagher The US should formally recognize Taiwan as an independent nation, and end its outdated and counterproductive “one China” policy, US Representative Tom Tiffany and 18 other US lawmakers wrote in a petition. “It is time to change the status quo and recognize the reality denied by the US government for decades: Taiwan is an independent nation,” Tiffany told the Epoch Times. “As our long-standing and valued partner, correctly acknowledging their independence from communist China is long overdue.” The resolution also asks the administration of US President Joe Biden to support Taiwan’s membership in international organizations and to negotiate a bilateral free-trade
GUT FEELING: In the leaked memo, US Air Force General Mike Minihan urged mobile command personnel to go to a firing range, shoot at a target and ‘aim for the head’ A four-star US Air Force general has warned of a conflict with China as early as 2025 — most likely over Taiwan — and urged his commanders to push their units to achieve maximum operational battle readiness this year. In an internal memorandum that first emerged on social media on Friday, and was later confirmed as genuine by the Pentagon, Air Mobility Command Commander General Mike Minihan said that the main goal should be to deter “and, if required, defeat” China. “I hope I am wrong. My gut tells me we will fight in 2025,” Minihan said. Minihan said that Taiwan’s presidential election
DEMOCRATIC SYSTEM: Czech president-elect Petr Pavel said his nation stands firmly on the side of democracy and would boost cooperation with Taipei in all aspects Czech president-elect Petr Pavel spoke by telephone with President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday, a highly unusual move given the lack of formal ties and a diplomatic coup for Taipei. Tsai spoke with Pavel for 15 minutes in a harmonious atmosphere, Presidential Office spokeswoman Lin Yu-chan (林聿禪) said, adding that Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) was also present during the conversation. Lin quoted Pavel as telling Tsai that Taiwan is a trustworthy partner, adding that the Czech Republic stands firmly on the side of democracy and supports Taiwan in maintaining a lively democratic system free from authoritarian coercion. The Czech Republic would