ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 153623
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| Date: | Friday 29 December 2000 |
| Time: | 07:30 LT |
| Type: |  Bell 407 |
| Owner/operator: | Petroleum Helicopters, Inc. |
| Registration: | N407MM |
| MSN: | 53060 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1997 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 4429 hours |
| Engine model: | Allison 250-C47B |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | ca 6 mi S of Gilchrist, TX -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Offshore |
| Departure airport: | CAMERON, LA (NONE) |
| GALVESTON, TX (KGLS) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
During a repositioning flight conducted in visual meteorological conditions, the helicopter disappeared over the Gulf of Mexico. No distress calls from the pilot were received. The main wreckage was located 2 days after the accident, with about 3-feet of the tail boom still attached. Deformation of the wreckage indicated evidence of an uncontrolled impact with the water. Five days later another section (middle) of the tail boom was recovered, floating about 60 miles from the main wreckage. When examined, this section revealed 4 tail rotor blade strike marks in relative distance along the tail boom of the tail rotor tip path plane. Fifty-eight days later, the aft most section of the tail boom was found washed up on the shoreline. Examination of this section revealed a missing rod end, which was part of the tail rotor pitch control system. It could not be determined if the rod end came loose in flight or during the impact with the water. According to the autopsy report, the pilot's death was due to traumatic injury with a "contributing" cause of an "acute occlusion to left anterior descending coronary artery of the heart." No definite conclusions could be drawn as to the reason for the loss of control.
Probable Cause: The loss of control for reasons undetermined.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB FTW01FA043
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 01-Mar-2013 09:56 | TB | Added |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:28 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 12-Dec-2017 19:35 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Operator, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 31-Dec-2017 14:30 | TB | Updated [Operator] |
| 04-Apr-2024 10:35 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Operator, Other fatalities, Phase, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, Category] |
| 04-Apr-2024 10:36 | ASN | Updated [Phase, Nature, Narrative] |
| 04-Apr-2024 10:38 | ASN | Updated [[Phase, Nature, Narrative]] |
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