What happened
On April 6, 2016, at approximately 1330 UTC, the crew of a Robinson R22 BETA, registered HB-ZGO, initiated a precautionary landing at Bern Airport (LSZB) in Bern, Switzerland. The decision to land was made after the crew detected the smell of smoke inside the aircraft.
During the descent, the pilots identified that the alternator had failed, resulting in the shutdown of the electrical system. Upon completing the landing, the crew successfully extinguished an alternator fire. There were no injuries to the two pilots, and the helicopter sustained minor damage. The flight had originated from LSZB at an undetermined time under visual meteorological conditions (VMC).
The aircraft
The helicopter, HB-ZGO, was owned and operated by Mountain Flyers 80 Ltd.