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| Date: | Saturday 16 October 2021 |
| Time: | 12:00 LT |
| Type: |  Eurocopter AS 350B3 Ecureuil |
| Owner/operator: | Air Meathods Corp |
| Registration: | N544AM |
| MSN: | 4206 |
| Year of manufacture: | 2007 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 7571 hours |
| Engine model: | Turbomeca ARRIEL 2B1 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 4 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Tucson Medical Center, AZ -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Landing |
| Nature: | Executive |
| Departure airport: | Nogales, AZ (N/A) |
| Tucson, AZ | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The operator reported that, during the landing for the air medical helicopter flight, the tail rotor blades collided with a large fire extinguisher that was located on the approach path and abeam a perimeter fence. The helicopter subsequently landed without further incident. The tailboom and horizontal stabilizer were substantially damaged. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation.
Probable Cause: The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from ground equipment during landing.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB WPR22LA018
Location
Media:
Lots of questions from the photos that have emerged of a tail rotor strike at an elevated hospital helipad in the US. https://t.co/Dm5kOvmN1h #helipad #heliport #hospital #helicopter #airambulance #accident #flightsafety #aviationsafety #ntsb pic.twitter.com/AB6OXGu8qL
— Aerossurance (@Aerossurance) December 23, 2021
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 23-Dec-2021 17:09 | Aerossurance | Added |
| 23-Dec-2021 17:11 | Aerossurance | Updated [Source, Embed code, Narrative, ] |
| 23-Dec-2021 17:11 | Aerossurance | Updated |
| 25-Jun-2022 07:07 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Operator, Other fatalities, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, Accident report, ] |
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