A passenger on board the aircraft told Oil and Gas People he heard a loud bang followed by a noise that “sounded like a brick going round in a washing machine” coming from the engines. The noise was so concerning that one passenger approached the pilots to raise their concerns.

The pilots then made the decision to shut down the engine in question before declaring a pan-pan and diverting to Sumburgh Airport. The helicopter is unable to land vertically under one engine conditions and performed a running landing where it was received by a full emergency response team at Sumburgh Airport.

A CHC Spokesperson advised: “An aircraft landed safety at Sumburgh airport this afternoon after a cockpit warning light illuminated during the flight. Our crew followed standard procedures and requested a priority landing.

“The aircraft made an uneventful landing and will now be thoroughly inspected by our engineers before returning to service.”

Step Change in Safety has also received criticism for not covering any of the recent helicopter incidents, despite making a commitment to the industry to report RTB Incidents going forward.