ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 180697
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| Date: | Monday 12 July 2004 |
| Time: | 15:15 |
| Type: |  Eurocopter AS 350B2 Ecureuil |
| Owner/operator: | Maverick Helicopter Inc |
| Registration: | N91MH |
| MSN: | 2898 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1996 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 9992 hours |
| Engine model: | Turbomeca Arriel 1D1 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 7 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Grand Canyon West Airport (1G4), Peach Springs, AZ -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Take off |
| Nature: | Passenger - Non-Scheduled/charter/Air Taxi |
| Departure airport: | Peach Springs, AZ (1G4) |
| Las Vegas, NV | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The helicopter settled to the ground hard while in the initial takeoff sequence from a helipad for a sightseeing tour flight. The pilot reported he was departing toward the southwest. During takeoff, about 20 knots of indicated airspeed, he detected the helicopter was not climbing. He noticed the main rotor rpm was decaying; he attempted to increase the rpm by lowering the collective, which was unsuccessful. As the helicopter started to yaw to the left, the pilot unsuccessfully tried to stop the left yaw by applying right pedal. The low rotor speed warning horn activated prior to the helicopter impacting the ground. Two videotapes were recovered from the helicopter's-on-board video recording system and sent to the Safety Board vehicle recorders division for readout. The video recorder group observed the helicopter takeoff in a downwind condition, as the bushes were observed blowing in the same direction as the takeoff path. The engine was installed in a test cell and operated for over 2 hours, and it was found to meet all normal parameters and engine performance specifications.
Probable Cause: The pilot's selection of downwind takeoff direction and improper use of the collective control prior to reaching translational lift, which resulted in a settling with power condition and a collision with the ground. Also causal was the pilot's failure to maintain main rotor rpm.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB: https://www.ntsb.gov/_layouts/ntsb.aviation/brief.aspx?ev_id=20040714X00976&key=1
History of this aircraft
Other occurrences involving this aircraft
| 17 August 2020 | C-FAHC | Aberdeen Helicopters Ltd | 1 | near Eskay Creek Mine, Iskut River, 45nm NNW of Stewart, BC |  |
w/o |
| Minerals and mining | ||||||
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 26-Oct-2015 20:58 | Noro | Added |
| 07-Dec-2017 18:39 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Cn, Operator, Other fatalities, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 12-Jan-2020 17:24 | Aerossurance | Updated [Aircraft type, Location, Nature] |
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