An Australian Army MRH90 Taipan helicopter conducts reconnaissance at Shepparton, Victoria, as part of Operation Flood Assist 2022. (Australian Capt. Carolyn Barnett)
SYDNEY — Australia today grounded its Taipan helicopter fleet after an aircraft taking part in a special operations training operation was forced to ditch in the water near a New South Wales beach.
The MRH-90 fleet of 47 helicopters has been troubled for some time, criticized by the Australian government for high operating costs and other shortcomings. The Airbus helicopter cost $50,000 AUD an hour to operate in fiscal 2020. For comparison, the much-more advanced F-35A Joint Strike Fighter cost $33,600 USD to operate per hour in 2020, which today would convert to roughly the same $50,000 AUD as the helicopter.
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation interviewed several witnesses to the Taipan crash. Michael Ungerboeck was fishing in a boat on Wednesday evening when he saw two helicopters involved in the counterterrorism exercise hovering around 20 yards above the water of Jervis Bay.
“We started to hear the rotor blades really wind down and you could see the navigation lights getting pretty damn close [to the water] then all of a sudden it powered up again and it went up,” the ABC quotes Ungerboeck. “Just as it took off there were sparks at the top of the rotor blade and a big explosion and then fire burst out of the rotor blade.”
The helicopter made a controlled descent and only two of 10 people onboard were injured. Defense Minister Richard Marles offered praise to the chopper’s crew.
“That represents an incredible achievement on the part of the crew. This was a textbook response to a loss of power. The engine stopped, the crew were able to shut the engine down and to ditch the aircraft into Jervis Bay in a way where it was able to keep the aircraft upright.,” Marles said in an appearance at Parliament.
Army Maj. Gen. Stephen Jobson, the first leader of Aviation Command, spoke at a press conference and would not discuss details of the crash, noting that Australia’s Defense Flight Safety Bureau would be conducting an investigation.
“It’s important we ensure that we refrain from speculations and focus on supporting the team that is going to undertake the investigation and point us into the direction to ensure that we can safely operate this aircraft system into the future,” he said.
No speculation is needed about the long-term fate of the Taipan . In January, the Defense Ministry announced in January it was buying 40 Black Hawks.
The roughly $2.8 billion AUD (approximately $2 billion USD) deal for the Black Hawk will provide “a reliable, proven and mature platform supported by a robust global supply chain,” the head of the Australian army’s land capability, Maj. Gen. Jeremy King, said in a statement announcing the purchase.
