ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 223296
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| Date: | Friday 29 January 2016 |
| Time: | 13:03 |
| Type: |  Eurocopter EC 130B4 |
| Owner/operator: | Air Methods |
| Registration: | N133HN |
| MSN: | 7293 |
| Year of manufacture: | 2011 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 1613 hours |
| Engine model: | Turbomeca 2B1 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 3 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Shoals, WV -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Passenger - Non-Scheduled/charter/Air Taxi |
| Departure airport: | Huntington, WV (WV27) |
| Louisa, KY (None) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
Before takeoff for the positioning flight, the specialty nurse slid closed and latched the left rear door. About 5 minutes after departure, while the helicopter was in cruise flight, the left rear door opened and then separated from the helicopter. The pilot diverted the helicopter to a nearby airport and landed uneventfully. The door was recovered, and postaccident examination revealed that the damage to the door and the airframe was consistent with the damage having incurred during the door’s separation from the helicopter. Postaccident examination did not reveal any evidence of preexisting damage of the door frame, door, or door’s locking mechanism that would have precluded normal operation. It is likely that the specialty nurse locked the door incorrectly, which resulted in an inadvertent in-flight door opening as the helicopter was traveling 55 knots faster than the manufacturer’s specified never-to-exceed speed for operating with the door open, and subsequent separation of the door from the helicopter.
Probable Cause: The improper locking of the rear passenger door by the specialty nurse, which resulted in the door separating from the helicopter in flight.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 22-Mar-2019 19:07 | ASN Update Bot | Added |
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