UPDF CHOPPER CRASH: Inside Jet Ranger, Previous Accidents

Published by Secondopinion Writer at January 29, 2020

By Francis Otucu

Tuesday morning, Uganda, one of the powerful countries using Jet Rangers got news of a crash involving Jet Ranger AF 302 belonging to the army.

The incident that happened at Bulo in the central district of Butambala killed two and only occupants of the chopper.

The victims were later identified as Maj. Naomi Karungi and Lt. Benon Wokalu who were on training mission.

However, this news site understands that this is not the first time a Jet Ranger is being involved in fatal accidents.

PREVIOUS INCIDENTS

On August 1, 1977, famous U-2 spy plane pilot Francis Gary Powers was piloting a helicopter for KNBC Channel 4 over West Los Angeles California when the aircraft crashed, killing him and cameraman George Spears.[3]:251,289–290,324 They had been video recording brush fires in Santa Barbara County in the KNBC helicopter and were leaving the area.

On August 27, 1990, Musician Stevie Ray Vaughan, Pilot Jeff Brown, and three members of Eric Clapton’s crew, Bobby Brooks, Nigel Browne, and Colin Smythe, were killed in a fatal 206B crash.

On August 20, 2014, Guatemala’s Army Chief of Staff was killed when his Bell 206 crashed.

On February 11, 2019, the Brazilian journalist Ricardo Boechat and the pilot were killed when a Bell 206B, PT-HPG, made an emergency landing on a highway and was hit by a truck.

^{SOURCE: GOOGLE}

^{JET RANGER}

Role	Multipurpose utility helicopter
National origin	United States/Canada
Manufacturer	Bell Helicopter
First flight	December 8, 1962 (206)^[1] January 10, 1966 (206A)^[2]
Introduction	1967
Status	In service
Produced	1962–2017^[3]
Number built	7,300^[4]
Unit cost	approx. US$900,000 to $1.2 million^[4]
Developed from	Bell YOH-4
Variants	Bell OH-58 Kiowa
Developed into	Bell 407