KUALA LUMPUR, March 25 — “I heard a loud noise from a helicopter but not the usual (sound),” said R. Romu when asked about the Airbus H125 helicopter that crashed at the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport (LTSAAS) in Subang yesterday morning injuring two of the five people on board.
The 74-year-old witness said he heard the loud noise while going out for breakfast but ignored it.
“After my breakfast, I passed the road near LTSAAS and discovered that a helicopter had crashed. I am used to hearing the sound of helicopters or airplanes but, this time, the sound was very different from the usual (helicopters),” he told reporters when met near the scene at LTSAAS, here, yesterday.
Romu added that he had never heard such loud noise before while working in the nearby area.
“The distance between the scene and where I work is only 500 metres,” he said, adding this was the first time he had witnessed a helicopter crash.
Meanwhile, checks by Bernama found that the helicopter wreckage had been removed and taken to the Airbus hangar at about 3 pm for further investigation by the Air Accident Investigation Bureau.
Apart from that, several airport employees were also seen cleaning up the crash scene.
The helicopter, which is operated by Leopad Aviation Sdn Bhd and crashed at 9.18am, had departed Sungai Lembing, Pahang at 8.30 am on a private flight to Subang via Maran, Temerloh, Karak and Batu Caves, with one pilot and four passengers on board.