The Air Accident Investigation Department confirmed yesterday that the flight and data records, black box, for the helicopter which crashed last week off Grand Cay, Abaco have been recovered.
According to AAID, the flight and data records will be shipped to the National Transportation Safety Board in Washington D.C. for analysis.
The aircraft, which crashed with seven persons onboard, was an Agusta SPA helicopter, registration N32CC.
“The wreckage has been shipped to the United States where it will be laid out, documented and cataloged at the facility to verify all of the craft was recovered,” an AAID statement read.
“Following confirmation of the complete craft at the site, analysis and further documentation including sampling and removal of certain parts or components will occur, where these parts or components will be sent to other facilities (as appropriate) for further analysis under more controlled conditions.
“Assisting in the investigation includes representatives from Italy – State of Design and Manufacture of the craft, Canada – State of manufacture of the engine, the USA – State of Registry and the Bahamas – State of Occurrence.”
According to AAID, it is too early to determine cause or contributing factors of the deadly helicopter crash.
Since the crash, police have released the identities of the seven victims who lost their lives.
The victims are pilot Geoffrey LeePainter, of Barnes Staple, United Kingdom, Kameron Nicole Cline, of Washington, D.C., Brittney Layne Searson, of Palm Beach, Florida, Jillian Nicole Clarke, of Los Angeles, Califonia, Davis Jude, of Kentucky, Wykyle Delaney Lee, of Washington, D.C. and Christopher Cline, of New York.
International reports indicated that 60-year-old Christopher Cline was a billionaire coal magnate from West Virginia. Twenty-two-year-old Kameron was his daughter and the other young women were her friends
Their bodies of the victims were brought to New Providence on Friday.
According to police, the helicopter took off from Big Grand Cay around 2 a.m. on July 4 en route to Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
The missing helicopter was reported to police around 2:53 p.m. on July 4 after it did not arrive at its destination.
Police and residents of Grand Cay later discovered the aircraft overturned in 16 feet of water off Grand Cay.
The bodies of four females and three males were retrieved from the helicopter.
The Department of Civil Aviation and the Royal Bahamas Police Force, along with AAID, continue their investigations.
