Antje Nauhaus (34), accused of various charges related to a fatal helicopter crash on 17 July that resulted in two deaths, was granted bail of N$15 000 by Swakopmund magistrate Conchita Olivier yesterday. The bail conditions specified by the court will ensure Nauhaus’ compliance with the ongoing investigation.
Nauhaus is required to report to the Swakopmund police station on Mondays and Fridays, hand over her passport and is prohibited from applying for a new one while her case is ongoing.
Additionally, she may not leave the district of Swakopmund without permission from the investigating officer. She has also been instructed not to interfere with the ongoing investigation.
The case has been postponed until December to allow time for further investigation.
State prosecutor Anita Likius represented the state, while Nauhaus is represented by defence lawyer Willem Greyling.
Nauhaus is facing charges that include fraud, forgery, contravention of civil aviation regulations and culpable homicide, after the helicopter crash led to the deaths of pilot and flight instructor Jacques Jacobs (54) and aviation technician Dirk von Weitz (29).
Nauhaus allegedly forged and altered certificates of registration and flight test permits for the Robin-44 helicopter involved in the crash.
The helicopter is owned by a Namibia-based aviation company. Various items have been confiscated from both Nauhaus’ residence and the aviation company’s offices as part of the investigation.
The charges cite multiple violations of the Civil Aviation Act, including the falsification, reproduction or alteration of maintenance documents, approval requirements, procedure manuals, quality assurance systems and reports on defects or non-airworthy conditions.
The helicopter was imported from South Africa and was mandated to undergo specific technical inspections and administrative procedures for registration in Namibia.
Police reports note that the flight test permit used for the ill-fated flight was allegedly forged.
The helicopter was supposed to be fully licenced in Namibia before take-off. The accident occurred during a test flight.
The Directorate of Aircraft Accident and Incident Investigations issued its preliminary report indicating that the helicopter did not have a valid certificate of airworthiness for South Africa or Namibia.
The report, released by works and transport minister John Mutorwa, noted that the helicopter arrived in Namibia last year and the Namibia Civil Aviation Authority applied for the registration to be reserved in June 2023.
“The regulator did reserve the registration. Despite the reservation, the owner of the helicopter did not proceed with the actual registration process,” noted the report which added that at the time of the accident, the helicopter was still under the South African registration.
Although the pilot had a valid commercial helicopter pilot licence, the helicopter did not have a test flight permit to perform the test flight.
“Instead of using its original engine, the helicopter was equipped with an engine that previously belonged to a Namibian registered helicopter with the registration V5-HJL (R44),” noted the report.
It also indicated that the helicopter was neither equipped with a flight data recorder or a cockpit voice recorder.
The helicopter was purchased from South Africa and brought into Namibia in February 2022 by the owner on a trailer.
The owner took it for maintenance inspection and certification.
The helicopter and engine required a 12-year inspection. After all maintenance was completed, the maintenance organisation reportedly informed the owner that they were ready for a test flight in July, noted the report.
The purpose of the test flight was to conduct final rotor balancing and execute auto-rotations.
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