Misplaced pin
felled helicopter
The Marines blame a Kaneohe-based
crew for an Okinawa crash
A Marine Corps maintenance helicopter crew based at Kaneohe has been blamed for the crash of a twin-rotor CH-53D Sea Stallion two months ago on a university campus on Okinawa.
A written release from the Marine Corps on Okinawa said the Aug. 13 crash occurred because a cotter pin was improperly installed in a connecting bolt on a subassembly of the helicopter's tail rotor.
The bolt fell out during the flight, and the pilots lost control of the rotor, the release said.
Maintenance personnel, who were not identified by the Marines, failed to comply with standard installation procedures, according to the statement. The cotter pin was incorrectly installed in only that one helicopter.
The Sea Stallion helicopter from Kaneohe with a crew of three crashed on the campus of Okinawa International University, about 330 yards from the fence line of Marine Corps Air Station Futenma. It clipped the wall of the school's administration building and burst into flames.
The reports said the maintenance errors were unique to the CH-53D that crashed, and investigators found no evidence of any other structural defects or pilot error.
Immediately following the crash, the Marine Corps grounded all CH-53D helicopters in Japan. Safety and maintenance reviews confirmed that the other aircraft were safe to fly.
A copy of the report was given to the Japanese government yesterday as well as recommendations -- such as improved maintenance procedures, additional preflight checks of key parts, and revised work hour guidelines -- to prevent further mishaps.
The Delta model medium-lift, twin-rotor helicopter and its crew of three are from Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 463 from Marine Corps Base Hawaii. Only one of the three crew members injured in the Aug. 13 crash was hospitalized.
The unit deployed to Okinawa in April for what was supposed to be a six-month tour. However, the unit with 70 Marines and six Sea Stallions was sent to Kuwait last month as part of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit in support of the Iraq war. Included in that deployment were more than 900 members of 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, from Kaneohe.
A Camp Smith spokesman did confirm that the maintenance crew was from Kaneohe. However, Chuck Little, Marine Forces Pacific spokesman, said yesterday it was too early to say whether disciplinary action will be taken.
That determination would be made by Brig. Gen. Duane Thiessen, the case's convening authority and commander of the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing on Okinawa.
The written release said: "Military personnel are responsible for their actions, and those who fail to follow established maintenance instructions are subject to administrative and/or disciplinary actions."
