LAX95LA063

The pilot and an observer departed the ship for a fish-spotting mission. When the pilot did not report his position, the ship returned to the last known position and found various debris from the aircraft. There were no distress radio calls from the pilot. The operator reported no known problems with the aircraft prior to the accident. The weather conditions were good visibility with light winds.

On December 28, 1994, at 1515 local Guam time, a McDonnell-Douglas 500 helicopter, N9128F, with two persons onboard, was reported missing during a local fish-spotting mission southwest of Chuuk Island in the Pacific Ocean (1 degree 25 minutes north; 152 degrees 9 minutes east). Fair weather conditions were reported by the ship's crew. The aircraft was operated by Hoffman Helicopters, Inc., on the island of Guam. According to the operator, the helicopter was being used as a fish spotter for a Taiwanese fishing vessel the "Winfar 636."

The operator reported that the helicopter was 5 minutes from the ship conducting normal operations. When the pilot stopped reporting his position, the ship returned to the last known position to begin a search. The search found some floats and an oil slick, but no helicopter or crew. The ship arrived at the last known location at 1558 and found various debris from the aircraft at 1610. There were no reported distress calls from the crew.

According to the operator, the aircraft and radios were operating normally with no known problems. The pilot was an experienced pilot and held a mechanic's license.