ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 46297
Last updated: 26 May 2013
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| Date: | 15-JAN-2001 |
| Time: | 9:45 |
| Type: |  Bell (CDF) UH-1F |
| Operator: | |
| Registration: | ZK-HVY |
| C/n / msn: | |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Airplane damage: | Written off (damaged beyond repair) |
| Location: | Wellington -
 New Zealand
|
| Phase: | |
| Nature: | |
| Departure airport: | |
The helicopter was shifting skips of earth from a construction site on Mt Victoria to a carpark at the summit, where the skips were emptied into waiting trucks. Approaching the carpark on the fifth load, the helicopter was observed to be flying erratically. The pilot placed the skip on the ground and jettisoned the longline. The helicopter yawed and rolled to the left, striking the ground near the summit lookout in a semi-inverted attitude. The investigation found that the helicopter had had a hydraulic system failure, leading to a loss of control. A considerable quantity of hydraulic fluid was found on the road at the drop-off point, and a pressure line was later found with a fatigue crack in the vicinity of the tube end. The MS flareless fitting at the tube end had been grossly over tightened at some stage in its life, and this, combined with in-service flexing and reverse bending, had led to the failure. When and by whom the tube was overtightened could not be established, but it appeared that it may have been done before the helicopter arrived in New Zealand in 1995. It is also unlikely that it was performed by a licensed aircraft engineer, given that the characteristics of flareless fittings should be part of an engineer's basic training.
Sources:
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 04-Nov-2008 10:35 | ASN archive | Added |
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