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Unite calls for offshore flight overhaul

Offshore industry bosses are failing to make commuter flights as safe as possible

Offshore industry bosses are failing in their "moral obligation" to make commuter flights as safe as possible, trade union Unite will tell MPs today.

The union repeated calls for "modest" safety reforms yesterday before its submission to MPs on the Commons transport committee.

Unite's Back Home Safe petition includes demands for improved emergency lighting and seating configurations, upgraded survival equipment and training and an independent review of ditching procedures.

It has received more than 3,500 signatures.

Unite regional industrial officer John Taylor said his union's demands reflected a "confidence issue" among offshore workers following a string of crashes in the North Sea since 2009.

"This isn't scaremongering, it's a reality that must be faced-up to," he said.

"Helicopter transfers are the only efficient means of transferring workers to and from offshore installations, but the industry and the operators have a moral obligation to make these transfers as safe as possible in order to get their people back home safe."

Over 50 per cent of offshore workers polled said they were not confident of the safety of such flights, according to the campaign, with 77 per cent stating that confidence declined over the last year.

The hearing follows the four deaths in August when a Super Puma helicopter returning from the Borgsten Dolphin platform plunged into the North Sea off the south Shetland coast.

In 2012 the Super Puma fleet was temporarily grounded after two emergency water landings in less than a year, while a fatal accident inquiry launched earlier this month has begun to investigate the cause of a 2009 crash that cost the lives of 16 people.

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