ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 268400
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| Date: | 06-OCT-2021 |
| Time: | c. 21:15 |
| Type: |  Bell 429 GlobalRanger |
| Owner/operator: | Mercy Flight Inc |
| Registration: | N505TJ |
| MSN: | 57029 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 4 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | N of Genesee County Airport (GVQ/KGVQ), Batavia, NY -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Approach |
| Nature: | Ambulance |
| Departure airport: | Strong Memorial Hospital, Rochester NY |
| Batavia-Genesee County Airport, NY (KGVQ) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The pilot reported that he decided to perform a practice approach to the runway using night vision goggles. He set up the approach and activated the autopilot. About 200 ft above the ground, the helicopter inadvertently entered a fog bank and the pilot lost visual reference to the runway. He attempted to perform a climbing right turn but forgot to deactivate the autopilot. The autopilot initiated a descent into the fog, the pilot maintained a level attitude, and shortly thereafter the helicopter impacted the ground and bounced. The pilot attempted to initiate a climb; however, the helicopter impacted the ground a second time, which resulted in substantial damage to the fuselage. The pilot reported no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation.
Probable Cause: The pilot's failure to disengage the autopilot prior to climbing out of a fog bank.
Sources:
https://www.wbfo.org/state/2021-10-07/mercy-flight-helicopter-crash-in-genesee-county-no-injuries-reported
https://www.thebatavian.com/howard-b-owens/helicopter-damaged-no-injuries-after-mercy-flight-makes-hard-landing-at-airport
https://www.whec.com/news/deputies-nobody-hurt-after-mercy-flight-helicopter-forced-to-make-hard-landing-at-genesee-county-airport/6262618/?cat=565
https://www.wkbw.com/news/local-news/faa-to-investigate-hard-landing-from-mercy-flight-helicopter-in-batavia
https://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/Search/NNumberResult?NNumberTxt=505TJ
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/N505TJ/history/20211007/0134Z/KROC/KGVQ
http://aerossurance.com/helicopters/hems-b429-nvg-iimc-loc-i/
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Location
Media:
B429 damaged, no injuries, after Mercy Flight makes hard landing at airport https://t.co/triQbgFnfN
— Aerossurance (@Aerossurance) October 8, 2021
(1/2) At about 9:30PM yesterday, Mercy Flight’s Batavia-based helicopter N505TJ was involved in a hard landing near the Genesee County Airport. No patients were onboard at the time of the incident, and all four of the Mercy Flight crew members involved sustained no injuries.
— Mercy Flight (@mercyflightwny) October 7, 2021
(2/2) The condition of the aircraft is being evaluated, and Mercy Flight’s spare helicopter ensures that there will be no immediate disruption of service to the community. We would like to sincerely thank all those who have offered their support and well-wishes during this time.
— Mercy Flight (@mercyflightwny) October 7, 2021
After going #IIMC in fog during an #NVIS approach the pilot attempted to hand fly the go-around without de-coupling the autopilot resulting in an impact in farmland adjacent to the airport. https://t.co/l0kzGZuzQn #airambulance #helicopter #accident #flightsafety #aviationsafety pic.twitter.com/Lo5e00Dted
— Aerossurance (@Aerossurance) January 15, 2022
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 07-Oct-2021 15:41 | Geno | Added |
| 07-Oct-2021 16:34 | RobertMB | Updated [Time, Aircraft type, Registration, Cn, Operator, Departure airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 07-Oct-2021 16:44 | RobertMB | Updated [Time, Source, Damage, Narrative] |
| 07-Oct-2021 16:53 | RobertMB | Updated [Aircraft type, Total occupants, Source, Narrative] |
| 07-Oct-2021 18:05 | RobertMB | Updated [Narrative] |
| 08-Oct-2021 10:32 | Aerossurance | Updated [Narrative] |
| 08-Oct-2021 10:39 | Aerossurance | Updated [Total occupants, Location, Phase, Departure airport, Source, Embed code, Narrative] |
| 10-Oct-2021 20:17 | Captain Adam | Updated [Embed code, Damage, Narrative] |
| 15-Jan-2022 13:11 | Aerossurance | Updated [Location, Narrative, Category] |
| 15-Jan-2022 13:12 | Aerossurance | Updated [Category] |
| 15-Jan-2022 14:12 | Aerossurance | Updated [Narrative, Category] |
| 15-Jan-2022 14:18 | Aerossurance | Updated [Category] |
| 15-Jan-2022 15:13 | Aerossurance | Updated [Source, Embed code] |
| 15-Jan-2022 15:13 | Aerossurance | Updated [Source, Embed code] |
| 15-Jan-2022 15:14 | Aerossurance | Updated [Embed code, Narrative] |
| 29-May-2022 19:52 | harro | Updated [Date, Narrative, Accident report] |
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