ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 37838
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| Date: | Friday 12 September 1997 |
| Time: | 16:40 LT |
| Type: |  Bell 205A-1 |
| Owner/operator: | National Park Service |
| Registration: | N90HJ |
| MSN: | 30309 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1979 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 4486 hours |
| Engine model: | Allied Signal T53-17A |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 3 / Occupants: 8 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Sequim, WA -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Initial climb |
| Nature: | Unknown |
| Departure airport: | Port Angeles, WA |
| (KCLM) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The public-use helicopter was being operated in a joint effort search for a missing hiker outside of the park. The single pilot had landed at a remote landing zone in mountainous terrain to retrieve seven search and rescue personnel plus a dog. The pilot advised the SAR personnel to load quick, as he had no intentions of spending the night there. The pilot held up five fingers to ground personnel, who assumed that meant to wait 5 minutes for the obscuration to clear. However, in less than that time, the helicopter performed a vertical takeoff in the obscuration. According to the remaining SAR personnel, they lost sight of the helicopter about 50 feet agl. They continued to hear the helicopter to the time of a collision sound, followed by the sound of an avalanche. The remaining SAR personnel departed the landing zone for cover.
Probable Cause: the pilot's intentional flight into known adverse weather conditions in mountainous terrain.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB LAX97GA325
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 24-Oct-2008 10:30 | ASN archive | Added |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:23 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 08-Apr-2024 12:53 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Other fatalities, Phase, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, Category, Accident report] |
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