ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 167180
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| Date: | Tuesday 7 July 1987 |
| Time: | |
| Type: |  Bell 205A-1 Iroquois |
| Owner/operator: | Suriname Air Force |
| Registration: | SAF-300 |
| MSN: | 30111 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1972 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 6 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Location: | near the border with French Guiana -
 Suriname
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | SMZO |
| East Suriname | |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
This Surinamese Army Bell 205 Iroquois (Huey gunship) helicopter (SAF-300) piloted by an American and carrying another American crewman crashed near the border with French Guiana, killing the American pilot Billy Pearson from Conway, S.C. (USA). And also injuring a crewmember, another American helicopter mechanic named Lynn Bevan, 48 of Trumbill, Conn. (USA) who was taken to a hospital in Paramaribo for medical care. According to a army spokesman, the helicopter was on a reconnaissance mission when it crashed from a mechanical failure at night. The fate of four other Surinamese soldiers who were also aboard the helicopter were unknown. Before the crash, an explosion was heard and the craft's motor failed when it was about 300 feet above the ground. The pilot tried to land, said Bevan, but the helicopter overshot the nearest clearing and hovered about 30 feet above the ground before going down. According to the Suriname News Agency, the military men were flying between Paramaribo, the capital, and the Eastern border, where Rebellions Jungle Commando Brunswijk's forces had a base on an island in the Maroni River that divides Suriname and French Guiana. The centre of a year old interior war between the Surinamese army and the anti-government rebels. Apparently the helicopter was repaired and seen flying a year later for almost 5 more years prior to sale to the US as N6594S. (Later transferred from owners in France as F-GKBK and Canada as C-GREF)
Sources:
https://apnews.com/619535e33fb28f3150800cc784f2a260
https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2245&dat=19870711&id=BrM0AAAAIBAJ&sjid=YiEGAAAAIBAJ&pg=4933,1259525&hl=en
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 21-Jun-2014 19:38 | soero | Added |
| 22-Jun-2014 06:20 | soero | Updated [Narrative] |
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