Aerospatiale AS 350B2 Ecureuil crash near 275km SW of David Plateau Skiway, Antarctica

The Ecureuil was returning to Davis Station with a pilot and two passengers, one of two helicopters that had taken a scientist and two field training officers to a penguin rookery at Cape Darnley. Both refuelled at a cache on the Amery ice shelf before departing southeast for the next stop. Facing a rapid reduction in visual cues, the pilot held about 150 feet above ground. Both pilots discussed the reduced surface definition and loss of horizon and elected to return to the cache until conditions improved. During the turn back, the helicopter descended and struck the ice shelf. All three were seriously injured and the aircraft destroyed. The ATSB found the pilot did not detect the descent and had probably become spatially disorientated, contributed to by the loss of visual cues and a breakdown in his instrument scan. The operator subsequently introduced autopilot-equipped helicopters, simulator training under an experienced Antarctic pilot, a situational awareness course, and amended documentation prescribing minimum radar altimeter settings and guidance on avoiding and reacting to inadvertent white-out.