29.6909° N, 91.3095° WPlaced by OpenAirDocs: center of Patterson, LA, within about 6 miles.Open in the map
Date
January 21, 1981 · 13:05 local
Place
Patterson, LA
Phase of flight
Level Off Touchdown
Operating rules
Air taxi and commuter (Part 135)
Operator
ALGA
Damage
Substantial damage
Aircraft
N5745B
Reported as
Bell 222
People aboard
1
Fatal injuries
0
Pilot’s flight hours
5,236 total44 in this make and model44 in the last 90 days
From the FAA’s Accident/Incident Data System (AIDS), through its Aviation Safety Information Portal, as reported. The NTSB investigates accidents separately, and its record of an accident is the fuller one. The aircraft is matched to the registry by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
What happened
The FAA’s narrative, in sentence case. The FAA writes it in capitals and removes private details.
Helicopter tail rotor hit helipad during landing & pilot lost directional control causing hard landing.
As the FAA filed it
HELICOPTER TAIL ROTOR HIT HELIPAD DURING LANDING & PILOT LOST DIRECTIONAL CONTROL CAUSING HARD LANDING.