Amphibious Assault Helicopter Marinnon Resumes Flight Two Years After Crash Accident

[Asia Economy Reporter Yang Nak-gyu]The Marine Corps' amphibious assault helicopter, the Marinon, which had its operations suspended following a crash accident, has resumed operational flights after about two years.

On the 9th, the Marine Corps Command announced, "The Marinon resumed operational flights yesterday at the Marine Corps 1st Aviation Battalion in Pohang, 23 months after the crash accident."

One Marinon crashed immediately after takeoff on July 17, 2018, when the main rotor (primary rotating blade) detached, resulting in the deaths of five soldiers.

The Marine Corps formed a joint accident investigation committee consisting of civilian, government, and military members to investigate the accident, and it was revealed that a defect in the rotor mast, the central shaft that turns the main rotor, was the cause of the accident. The Marine Corps required the parts manufacturer to establish a system to prevent heat treatment errors during production and to strengthen quality assurance systems such as increasing the number of nondestructive inspection personnel. The rotor mast must receive international quality certification. From December 2018 to April this year, the Marine Corps conducted flight resumption training in four stages and explained that they have secured the capability to perform aviation operational missions for resuming operations.

The Marine Corps also plans to resume Marinon operational flights in early July at the 2nd Aviation Battalion in Gimpo. In December last year, the Marine Corps established the 1st Aviation Battalion centered on the Marinon. The Marinon's maximum cruising speed reaches 265 km/h and it can fly for more than two hours. It is equipped with two 7.62 mm machine guns and can carry up to nine personnel.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.