ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 43453
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| Date: | Thursday 15 June 1989 |
| Time: | 09:40 |
| Type: |  Aérospatiale AS 350B |
| Owner/operator: | Era Aviation Inc |
| Registration: | N160EH |
| MSN: | 2071 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 680 hours |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Puntilla Lake, Alaska -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Ferry/positioning |
| Departure airport: | Puntilla Lake, Alaska |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
THE AIR TAXI PILOT WAS RETURNING THE HELICOPTER TO ITS BASE CAMP AFTER TRANSPORTING PASSENGERS & PARTS TO A REMOTE DRILLING SITE IN RURAL ALASKA. WHILE EN ROUTE, THE HELICOPTER COLLIDED WITH THE ROCK FACE OF A 3,900 FT RIDGE AT THE 3,500 FT LEVEL. THE WEATHER IN THE AREA WAS REPORTED TO BE OVERCAST BETWEEN 3,000 & 3,500 FT AMSL WITH LIGHT TO OCCASIONALLY HEAVY RAIN.
THE PILOT HAD AN INSTRUMENT RATING FOR AIRPLANES, BUT NOT FOR HELICOPTERS. HE WAS REPORTEDLY IN THE HABIT OF FLYING OVER THE RIDGES, WHEN THE WEATHER PERMITTED, TO MINIMIZE FLIGHT TIME, INSTEAD OF FOLLOWING LOWER TERRAIN IN NEARBY VALLEYS.
CAUSE: THE PILOT CONTINUED VFR FLIGHT INTO INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS (IMC) AND FAILED TO MAINTAIN SUFFICIENT ALTITUDE TO CLEAR THE MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN. THE WEATHER AND TERRAIN CONDITIONS WERE CONTRIBUTING FACTORS.
Sources:
1. NTSB: http://www.ntsb.gov/aviationquery/brief.aspx?ev_id=20001213X28450&key=1
2. FAA: http://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/NNum_Results.aspx?omni=Home-N-Number&nNumberTxt=160EH
3. http://www.helis.com/database/cn/35486/
4. [LINK NOT WORKING ANYMORE:http://coptercrazy.brinkster.net/search/se350show.asp?start=1051&count=50]
5. http://www.griffin-helicopters.co.uk/accidentdetails.aspx?accidentkey=11563
6. http://planecrashmap.com/plane/ak/N160EH/
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 24-Oct-2008 10:30 | ASN archive | Added |
| 30-Jun-2014 20:30 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Time, Operator, Location, Nature, Departure airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:24 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
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