Decker's ordeal - in his own words The Telegram

Robert Decker (left), the sole survivor of the March crash of Cougar Flight 491, leaves the inquiry on offshore helicopter safety with his lawyer Dan Simmons Thursday. - Photo by Alisha Morrissey/The Telegram

The following statement was read by Robert Decker, the sole survivor of Cougar Flight 491, following his testimony Thursday at the inquiry into offshore helicopter safety:

"I don't think that anyone will ever know why it was that I survived this disaster and the others did not.

"There probably is no good reason - just luck.

"What I do know is that I came incredibly close to losing my life also.

"There are several things that might have made some difference to my survival. I don't know whether they would have made a difference for anyone else or not.

"The first thing, I guess, I was relatively young, healthy and fit at the time of the crash.

"Another is that maybe the fact that I braced myself against the seat in front of me reduced the force against my chest with the helicopter hitting the water, and that might have left me with a little more air in my lungs.

"Also, when I regained consciousness from the submerged helicopter cabin, I know that I stayed calm and I didn't panic. I was able to concentrate on getting out of the helicopter and to the surface as quickly as possible.

"Many people know that I've been sailing in small boats, mostly on Conception Bay, since I was quite young, and I've taught sailing at the Royal Newfoundland Yacht Club. Many times I've been thrown into the cold sea water from an overturned boat.

"I think that that experience meant that when the helicopter suddenly filled with icy water I could react instinctively without having to consciously plan what I had to do.

"It was like a reflex to take a breath and to hold it and to just stay calm until I could get to the surface.

"As good as the HUET (helicopter underwater escape training) training is, a couple of days of controlled immersions in a pool every few years is not enough to allow anyone to develop the instinctive reactions that they need to have a chance of escape in a helicopter crash like Cougar 491.

"Other things were just luck.

"I was seated next to a window. The helicopter sank with the port side down. I was on the starboard side so that the open window next to me was above me when I released my seatbelt and the buoyancy in my suit probably helped carry me through it.

"Every second counted and small things like that made a very big difference.

"I know that many family members of the passengers are here today or are listening to the broadcast. I don't know what else I can say to you other than just to tell my story as I've done here today.

"It could just as easily have been someone else who survived and me that did not.

"I have already privately thanked the Cougar crew that came to my rescue on March 12, but I want to publicly thank them again here today.

"I hope that this inquiry does make offshore travel by helicopter safer.

"I will not be flying offshore anymore, but others continue to do it every day and they deserve to be able to do it safely.

"Training to escape from a crashed helicopter is important, having good survival suits is important, and having search and rescue capacity nearby is important.

"But all those things are what you need after there has been a crash into the ocean.

"If we really want to make offshore helicopter travel safe, what we have to do is to make sure that every helicopter does not crash.

"The best way to keep every offshore worker safe is to keep every helicopter in the air where it belongs.

"Safety starts with the helicopter, and I think everything else is secondary."