ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 36054
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| Date: | Thursday 1 June 1989 |
| Time: | 23:35 |
| Type: |  Bell 206L-3 LongRanger III |
| Owner/operator: | Rocky Mountain Helicopter |
| Registration: | N76KM |
| MSN: | 51103 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1984 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 1816 hours |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 4 / Occupants: 4 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Big Timber, MT -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Take off |
| Nature: | Ambulance |
| Departure airport: | |
| Billings, MT | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
AT ABT 2158 MDT, THE EMERG MED SVC (EMS/MEDEVAC) HELICOPTER (HEL) PLT CTCD BILLINGS TWR & ADZD HE WOULD BE MAKING APCHS TO SAINT VINCENTS HOSP FOR (NGT) CURRENCY. APRX 9 MIN LATER, HE CTCD THE TWR AGAIN & ADZD HE WAS BEING DISPATCHED ON AN EMS flight. THE EMS FLT WAS TO A RANCH (WNW OF BILLINGS). THE PLT HAD DIFFICULTY FINDING THE RANCH AT NGT, BUT ARRIVED AT 2238 MDT. THE PATIENT WAS LOADED & THE PLT WAS ADZD OF TRRN CONDS. A WITNESS SAID THE HEL LIFTED OFF FAST, THEN SWIVELEDARND QUICKLY (TOWARD EAST) & TOOK OFF W/O HESITATION. AFTER DEPG, THE HEL CROSSED A HILL & CRASHED AT HI SPD ON LWR TRRNIN A SLGT NOSE LOW, RGT BANK ATTITUDE, HDG 330 DEG. NO PREIMPACT MECH PRBLM WAS FND. THE PLT HAD BEEN RECENTLY HIRED BY THE OPERATOR; PREV EMPLOYMENT INVOLVED FLYING A DISSIMILAR HEL (BK-105) IN THE GULF OF MEXICO AREA, LIMITED TO DAY VFR. THE PLT'S LAST RECORDED NGT FLT WAS ON 6/16/87; HIS LAST RECORDED INST FLT WAS PRIOR TO JUNE 1984. NO RECORD WAS FND OF FAMILIARIZATION TRAINING FOR THE GEOGRAPHICAL AREA. RELATIVES OF THE PATIENT DESCRIBED THE ACDNT AREA AS A BLACK HOLE. CAUSE: FAILURE OF THE PILOT TO MAINTAIN CONTROL OF THE AIRCRAFT DURING TAKEOFF, DUE TO SPATIAL DISORIENTATION, WHICH RESULTED IN A COLLISION WITH THE TERRAIN. CONTRIBUTING FACTORS WERE: DARK NIGHT, PILOT'S VISUAL PERCEPTION, INADEQUATE INITIAL TRAINING OF THE PILOT BY THE OPERATOR, THE PILOT'S LACK OF FAMILIARITY WITH THE GEOGRAPHICAL AREA, AND THE COMPANY'S INSUFFICIENT STANDARDS/REQUIREMENTS.
Sources:
NTSB: https://www.ntsb.gov/ntsb/brief.asp?ev_id=20001213X28565
History of this aircraft
Other occurrences involving this aircraft
| 2 June 1989 | N76KM | Rocky Mountain Helicopter, Inc | Big Timber, MT | |
w/o |
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 24-Oct-2008 10:30 | ASN archive | Added |
| 07-Feb-2009 10:18 | harro | Updated |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:22 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
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