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Military was warned some Cyclone helicopter blades are defective, could rip apart in flight

Report says Cyclones’ ‘unmitigated risk level’ now ‘extremely high’

Air force technicians are being forced to perform more frequent inspections of Canada’s trouble-prone CH-148 Cyclone helicopters after the U.S. manufacturer found a defect related to the main rotor blades, says an internal report.

CBC News has obtained a copy of what’s known as a Record of Airworthiness Risk Management report for the maritime helicopter — basically, the military air safety branch’s plan to manage the aircraft’s critical deficiencies.

The unsigned, undated document says the CH-148’s maker Sikorsky alerted the military on June 6, 2022, to a potential “debonding” problem with the main rotor blades installed on some Cyclones.

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