KUALA LUMPUR: Adelia Mahiyudin (pic), who used to be co-pilot on the crashed Eurocopter AS365 (9M-IGB) Dauphin 2 helicopter, is still baffled over the tragedy.
Recalling her days of transporting former minister and Rompin MP Tan Sri Jamaludin Jarjis, she described the chopper as a reliable aircraft.
Adelia, 27, who is now a pilot with Weststar, said the aircraft was the most comfortable to fly because of it’s relatively bigger in size and stable.
“Dauphin is reliable and it is very rare to hear cases of it crashing, in this region, at least.
“It is also one of the most popular aircraft among VIPs. It was the only aircraft preferred by Jamaluddin for his business trips.
“Tan Sri liked to sit behind the co-pilot’s seat to see what the pilot is doing,” she said Tuesday.
Adelia said she was puzzled over what could have caused the crash and suggested that an abrupt manoeuvre could have been the reason.
“An abrupt manoeuvre could have been caused by a sudden technical malfunction such as a hydraulic leakage.
“However, these are very rare with Dauphin.
“Pilots also scheduled inspections before flights to ensure that the aircraft is in good condition,” she said.
She said human error was difficult to accept as it was flown by the experienced and skillful pilot Captain Clifford William Fournier Jr.
“The last person we imagine would cause human error is him. Cliff was a senior pilot and he always knew what he did and also knew the aircraft inside out.
Adelia said the pilot seemed fine health wise as he responded to a social media group chat before the flight and wrote: “We are still on the ground, we’re gonna take of soon.”
