Wigwe’s Death: Probe Points to US Helicopter Company and Pilot’s Culpability

Pilot spatial disorientation led to the helicopter crash that killed former Access Holdings Plc Group CEO Herbert Wigwe and his family, the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has reported.

The NTSB also faulted the helicopter company for “inadequate oversight of its safety management processes.”

This was contained in the NTSB final report unraveling the reasons for the helicopter crash in February 2024.

A preliminary report earlier showed that the helicopter, registered as N130CZ, crashed while operating under visual flight rules in what ultimately became instrument meteorological conditions, requiring different flight protocols and instrumentation.

According to the report, investigators determined the “probable cause of this accident to be: The pilot’s decision to continue the visual flight rules flight into instrument meteorological conditions, which resulted in the pilot’s spatial disorientation and loss of control.”

The crash, which occurred near the California-Nevada border on February 9, 2024, claimed the lives of all six people on board, including Wigwe, his wife Doreen, their son Chizi, and Abimbola Ogunbanjo, former Group Chairman of Nigerian Exchange Group Plc.

The US accident investigators further reveal that the helicopter company failed to ensure pilots properly completed flight risk analyses, recorded maintenance issues, and followed required regulations before departure.

“The pilot likely experienced spatial disorientation while maneuvering the helicopter in IMC [instrument meteorological conditions], which led to his loss of helicopter control and the resulting collision with terrain,” the report stated.

Significantly, the investigation showed that the helicopter’s radar altimeter was non-functional prior to the fatal flight.

The report detailed that during an earlier flight, the pilot had texted the maintenance director about an issue with this critical instrument.

“A company mechanic performed some troubleshooting on the radar altimeter; however, he was unable to rectify the issue, and the radar altimeter remained non-functional.

“The mechanic reported that the pilot and the DOM [director of maintenance] were aware that the radar altimeter was not functioning, yet they departed at 1822 on the positioning flight to pick up the passengers,” the report noted.

The investigation further found that after arriving to collect the charter passengers, the pilot and flight follower exchanged messages but “did not discuss the status of the radar altimeter or weather conditions.”