This information is added by users of ASN. Neither ASN nor the Flight Safety Foundation are responsible for the completeness or correctness of this information.
If you feel this information is incomplete or incorrect, you can submit corrected information.
Accident investigation report completed and information captured
Narrative: On 16 March 2016, at 1618 Pacific Daylight Time, the TRK Helicopters Ltd. Airbus Helicopters AS 350 FX2 helicopter departed from the base of a ski run approximately 82 nautical miles northwest of Smithers, British Columbia, on a day visual flight rules flight to the base camp (located approximately 7 nautical miles south-southeast of the ski run), with the pilot and 6 passengers on board. Approximately 1 minute after takeoff, while operating at low altitude, the pilot initiated a descent into a ravine. During the descent, the helicopter's airspeed increased rapidly. Moments later, the helicopter abruptly rolled to the right, pitched up, and collided with terrain on a steep snow-covered slope. There were no injuries, and all 7 occupants egressed the aircraft. The helicopter was substantially damaged. There was no post-impact fire and the emergency locator transmitter did not activate.
Findings as to causes and contributing factors: 1. The AS 350 hydraulic system experienced servo transparency due to the combination of a high-power descent near the never-exceed speed and a 1.5g to 1.8g vertical acceleration near maximum gross weight. 2. The pilot placed the helicopter in a flight regime that resulted in servo transparency at a height from which the pilot was unable to recover before the impact with the snow-covered terrain.