‘Conflict’ between pilot, Cyclone led to crash

Senior military officials have revealed there was a “conflict” or “competition” between a Cyclone helicopter and its pilot moments before the aircraft known as Stalker 22 plunged into the water off the coast of Greece in April.

Lt.-Gen. Alain Pelletier, commander of 1 Canadian Air Division, suggested Tuesday the problem was the result of a “series of events” and only occurred within a “very narrow band” of flight activities that had not been previously identified or tested.

The revelation came as the Royal Canadian Air Force announced it was lifting an “operational pause” imposed on the rest of the military’s Cyclone fleet after the crash, even though the reasons for that conflict remain under investigation.

The entire fleet was temporarily grounded after Stalker 22 crashed into the Ionian Sea on April 29 while preparing to land on the Halifaxclass frigate HMCS Fredericton following a NATO training mission and photo-op.

In announcing the resumption of flights, Air Force officials said investigators have been able to recreate the circumstances surrounding the crash using information from the Cyclone’s flight-data recorders, which were recovered from the sea.

The problem occurred as the helicopter was coming around to land on the Fredericton, officials said. The pilot attempted to make a number of manoeuvres while the Cyclone’s “flight director,” or autopilot, was still engaged.

Rather than turning off, the autopilot started to work against the human pilot before the helicopter crashed into the water at high speed.