ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 168620
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| Date: | Sunday 10 August 2014 |
| Time: | 10:15 |
| Type: |  Bell 47G-2 |
| Owner/operator: | Penn Tex Helicopters Inc |
| Registration: | N4690 |
| MSN: | BB2383 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1976 |
| Engine model: | Lycoming VO-435 SERIES |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | West of Jeanerette, Iberia Parish, Louisiana -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | Agricultural |
| Departure airport: | Jeanerette, LA |
| Jeanerette, LA | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The commercial pilot/owner was conducting an agricultural application flight in the helicopter. A witness reported observing the helicopter flying about 200 ft above ground level and then descending to just above the sugarcane tops. The helicopter then pitched down and impacted terrain, and it was destroyed.
About 3 days before the accident, the helicopter received a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ramp check, during which numerous discrepancies with the helicopter were found including, in part, a cracked tailboom tube structure, rusted bolts with improper grip lengths, a disabled transmission chip light, a worn transmission gear with a backed-off locknut, and a lack of proper lubrication. The FAA inspector noted that the helicopter was in a poor condition and considered to be unairworthy. The pilot/owner, who was also a licensed mechanic, performed his own maintenance. It is unlikely that the pilot corrected the maintenance issues in the intervening 3 days; therefore, the airplane was likely unairworthy at the time of the accident. The accident is consistent with the loss of helicopter control for reasons that could not be determined because the helicopter was destroyed at impact.
Probable Cause: The pilot’s improper decision to operate an unairworthy helicopter, which resulted in a loss of control and subsequent impact with terrain.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB
History of this aircraft
Other occurrences involving this aircraft
| 19 May 1988 | N4690 | Harmon Rex | 0 | Mc Dougal, AR | |
sub |
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 11-Aug-2014 06:42 | HeliNews+ | Added |
| 11-Aug-2014 16:58 | Geno | Updated [Aircraft type, Registration, Cn, Operator, Other fatalities, Location] |
| 11-Aug-2014 21:45 | Geno | Updated [Aircraft type, Registration, Cn, Operator, Source] |
| 12-Aug-2014 06:05 | Alpine Flight | Updated [Time, Damage] |
| 03-Dec-2017 17:53 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Cn, Operator, Other fatalities, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
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