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| Date: | Friday 1 May 2020 |
| Time: | 12:06 |
| Type: |  Sikorsky S-76B |
| Owner/operator: | Sejin Aviation |
| Registration: | HL9646 |
| MSN: | 760391 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1992 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 6258 hours |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 6 |
| Other fatalities: | 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | 400m S of Cheonwangbong Peak, Jirisan Mountain, Sancheong-gun -
 South Korea
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | Ambulance |
| Departure airport: | |
| Investigating agency: | ARAIB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
A firefighting / SAR helicopter Sikorsky S-76B carrying 5 crew crashed on Mount Jiri, South Korea while hoisting a casualty (a mountain climber who is reported to have suffered a heart attack). A second climber was on the ground below. The five persons sustained minor injuries, the two climbers died.
The helicopter (HL9646) was operated by Sejin Aviation, under lease to Gyeongsangnam-do Province.
At 11:28, HL9646 took off from the Gyeongsangnam-do Fire Aviation Rescue and Paramedic Unit.
At 11:42, it conducted reconnaissance between Cheonwangbong and Beopgye Temple at an altitude of approximately 5,900–6,200 feet to locate the emergency patient. However, due to the crowd of hikers in the area, the patient’s location could not be identified. After three circular reconnaissance attempts, the rescue team pinpointed the patient’s position.
At 11:50, HL9646 reached the rescue site and attempted the first approach, but aborted due to strong crosswinds. At 11:54 the helicopter arrived at the site for a second attempt, and rescue and paramedic team members were lowered to the site via hover mode. After completing the drop-off, HL9646 left the scene to hover in standby mode.
While in standby mode, HL9646 received a request to reapproach the rescue site. It moved into position and hovered over the area at an altitude of approximately 1,809 meters (5,935 feet) above sea level and 30–35 feet above ground level. Using a hoist, the paramedic team boarded the helicopter with the patient. While lifting the patient onto the stretcher connected to the hoist, the helicopter’s nose rotated to the right, and the aircraft shifted forward, descending unexpectedly.
At 12:06, while descending toward the ground, HL9646 failed to regain altitude. The main rotor blades collided with the ground, resulting in a crash.
The Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board determines the cause of this accident as follows:
"HL9646 crashed after exceeding the hover weight limit (performance) during a mountain rescue mission."
The contributing factors to this accident are determined as follows:
1. The flight crew took off without checking the hover performance chart as specified in the flight manual prior to the mission.
2. Engine maintenance, such as engine washing, was not conducted in accordance with the aircraft manual, leading to reduced engine performance due to internal contamination and corrosion.
3. The Engine Electronic Control (EEC) trim adjustment was not performed, resulting in discrepancies between the actual internal engine temperature (ITT) and torque compared to the cockpit instruments.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20200501000083
https://en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN20200501003651315
https://aerossurance.com/air-accidents-incidents/korean-sar-s-76b-mountain-rescue-accident-2020/
Location
Media:
Firefighting helicopter with 7 aboard crashes in Korea https://t.co/5zA8ssg5Nu
— Aerossurance (@Aerossurance) May 1, 2020
During a mountain rescue, hoisting a casualty aboard resulted in a catastrophic aircraft loss and two fatalities. We look at the recently issued accident report. https://t.co/2L5zycxA3v #sar #searchandrescue #helicopter #accident #flightsafety #aviationsafety pic.twitter.com/fffNgJ27Gd
— Aerossurance (@Aerossurance) January 11, 2025
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 01-May-2020 05:23 | gerard57 | Added |
| 01-May-2020 05:31 | gerard57 | Updated [Total occupants, Narrative, ] |
| 01-May-2020 05:43 | gerard57 | Updated [Aircraft type, Source, ] |
| 01-May-2020 06:18 | gerard57 | Updated [Total fatalities, Other fatalities, Narrative, ] |
| 01-May-2020 07:16 | Aerossurance | Updated [Operator, Nature, Source, Embed code, Narrative, ] |
| 01-May-2020 07:17 | Aerossurance | Updated [Operator, Location, Embed code, ] |
| 01-May-2020 07:18 | Aerossurance | Updated [Cn, ] |
| 01-May-2020 07:23 | Aerossurance | Updated [Narrative, ] |
| 04-May-2020 08:00 | Aerossurance | Updated [Total occupants, Phase, Source, Embed code, Narrative, ] |
| 04-May-2020 08:01 | Aerossurance | Updated [Narrative, ] |
| 04-May-2020 09:00 | Aerossurance | Updated [Total fatalities, Other fatalities, Source, Narrative, ] |
| 04-May-2020 10:06 | Aerossurance | Updated [Narrative, ] |
| 01-Mar-2021 19:40 | harro | Updated |
| 20-Dec-2024 09:14 | ASN | Updated [Location, Narrative, Accident report, ] |
| 20-Dec-2024 09:24 | ASN | Updated [Time, Source, Embed code, Narrative, Category, ] |
| 11-Jan-2025 09:45 | Aerossurance | Updated [Source, ] |
| 11-Jan-2025 13:35 | Aerossurance | Updated [Embed code, ] |
| 01-Sep-2025 15:06 | ASN | Updated [Embed code, Accident report, ] |
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