KUALA LUMPUR, June 15 — Foreign commercial helicopter pilots must now undergo special training and 10 hours’ of familiarisation flights before they are allowed to operate here, said the Department of Civil Aviation.

The foreign pilots must also have at least 1,000 hours of experience in flying helicopters.

DCA director general Datuk Seri Azharuddin Abdul Rahman said that the new measures were part of safety recommendations made by the Air Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) Malaysia after the crash in Batang Lupar, Sarawak last year.

Six people died in the crash including the late Tan Sri Noriah Kasnon, then deputy minister, and Datuk Wan Mohammad Khai-ril Anuar Wan Ahmad who was at the time Kuala Kangsar MP.

Advertisement

“These directives which come into force with immediate effect, would serves as a measure undertaken by DCA to address the safety recommendation made by AAIB and to prevent future accident or incident,” he said.

For short-term contracts of below three months, foreign pilots must also have flown a minimum of 25 hours in the specific helicopter within the last six months, and must undergo a three-day induction course.

The Eurocopter AS350 that crashed last May had been piloted by Filipino Captain Rudolf Rex Ragas, who died along with his five passengers.

Advertisement

The accident, during a journey from Betong to Kuching ahead of the Sarawak state election, was said to be partly caused by bad weather and the pilot’s apparent unfamiliarity with local terrain.