Investigators have determined that a lightning strike was to blame for a frightening incident on board a Cougar helicopter in January.

The Sikorsky chopper, which was en route to the SeaRose FPSO, was forced to turn back to St. John’s International after experiencing a bright flash accompanied by a loud bang, followed by a burning smell.

The emergency checklist was carried out and the helicopter was escorted back to YYT by search and rescue crews. There were no injuries.

Environment Canada confirmed there had been a lightning strike in the area on January 3.

An inspection of the helicopter found lightning damage to major components including two main rotor blades, tail rotor blades, tail rotor gearbox, and tail rotor pitch beam.

Repairs were made and the aircraft was returned to service. The full report from the Transportation Safety Board has yet to be released.