Kyrgyzstan national Aidana Baizieva (pic) is believed to have been in a relationship with the pilot, Clifford Fournier. ― Malay Mail picPUTRAJAYA, May 14 ― Pilot Clifford Fournier neglected to inspect his helicopter prior to takeoff despite concerns that its left landing gear had sunk 20 inches into the ground in its last landing, the preliminary report into the deadly crash in Semenyih last month revealed today
Transcript from the cockpit voice recorder (CVR) also revealed that the pilot had trusted the opinion of Kyrgystan national Aidana Baizieva in his decision making, although the Ministry of Transport (MOT) has repeatedly insisted today that she was “just a friend” of Fournier without any flight qualifications.
“The pilot was seen by a witness to have exited the helicopter and accompanied the disembarked passenger clear of the main rotor area.
“However, he did not carry out any inspection of the helicopter,” the report said in its findings section.
Lead investigator Capt Datuk Yahaya Abdul Rahman told the press that it is "standard procedure” for a pilot to get his aircraft checked in such a situation.
The MOT, however, commented that they are not placing any blame on anybody as it was not the purpose of the investigation by the Air Accident Investigation Bureau of Malaysia (AAIB).
More to come
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