# Accident 19960913028319A: Bell 206L1, Morgan City, LA, September 13, 1996

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: September 13, 1996, 07:10 local time
- Place: Morgan City, LA
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Autorot Descent (Rotorcraft)
- Operating rules: Air taxi and commuter (Part 135)
- Operator: ZV1A
- Location: 29.7304° N, 91.1301° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=29.7304&lon=-91.1301&mi=10
- Aircraft: N2654 (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: BELL 206L1
- Reported engine: ALLSN 250C30P
- People aboard: 4
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 16,000 total, 7,000 in this make and model, 90 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB FTW96LA386](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW96LA386) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19960913028319A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

HELICOPTER ENCOUNTERED A HIGH SPEED VIBRATION, PILOT INITIATED EMERGENCY PROCEDURES, AIRCRAFT ROLLED AND CRASHED. (.4)THE HELICOPTER WAS IN ROUTE TO SOUTH MARSH 243C IN THE GULF OF MEXICO FROM MORGAN CITY, LOUISIANA.  APPROXIMATELY 5 MINUTES INTO THE FLIGHT, AT AN ALTITUDE OF 500 FEET AGL, 'A LOUD CONTINUOUS, CHATTERING AND VIOLENT VIBRATION STARTED WITHOUT WARNING.'  DURING THE EMERGENCY LANDING TO A CANAL, ABOUT 50 FEET ABOVE THE TREES, THE VIBRATION TOTALLY CEASED; HOWEVER, THE HELICOPTER BEGAN TURNING TO THE RIGHT.  AT THIS TIME THE PILOT INITIATED AN AUTOROTATION AND DEPLOYED THE FLOATS.  THE HELICOPTER TOUCHED DOWN ON THE WATER IN A LEVEL ATTITUDE AT 20 TO 25 MPH, AND THE HELICOPTER CAME TO REST ON ITS SIDE.  ONE TAIL ROTOR BLADE WAS SHEARED FROM THE LEADING EDGE TO THE TRAILING EDGE AT THE OUTBOARD END.  SCANNING OF THE SHEARED AREA BY ENERGY DISPERSIVE X-RAY ANALYSIS (EDXA) REVEALED ELEMENTS OF LEAD AND CHROMIUM IN ONE AREA, AND TITANIUM, IRON, NICKEL AND CHROMIUM IN ANOTHER AREA.  EXAMINATION OF THE AREA WHICH CONTAINED THE ELEMENTS OF LEAD AND CHROMIUM WITH AN OPTICAL MICROSCOPE AT 60X MAGNIFICATION, REVEALED PARTICLES OF RED PAINT WITH                                    IN THIS AREA. THE OBJECT THAT STRUCK THE TAIL ROTOR BLADE COULD NOT BE DETERMINED.                                                                   (-23) ON SEPTEMBER 13, 1996, AT 0710 CDT, A BELL MODEL 206L-1, HELICOPTER, N2654, REGISTERED TO AND OPERATED BY MOBIL BUSINESS RESOURCES CORPORATION, EXPERIENCED AN UNUSUAL VIBRATION WHILE IN CRUISE FLIGHT. THE AIRCRAFT SUSTAINED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE DURING THE EMERGENCY LANDING ON A WATERWAY. THE AIRLINE TRANSPORT PILOT-RATED PILOT AND FOUR PASSENGERS WERE NOT INJURED. ONE PASSENGER SUSTAINED MINOR INJURIES. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AND COMPANY FLIGHT FOLLOWING PROCEDURES WERE IN EFFECT. THE FLIGHT HAD ORIGINATED FROM MOBIL'S HELIPAD IN MORGAN CITY, LOUISIANA (5LA2).

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB FTW96LA386](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW96LA386), Sep 13, 1996: Bell 206L-1/C-30P (N2654), Morgan City, LA, substantial damage. Probable cause: The loss of tail rotor control as result of a tail rotor blade strike by an undetermined object. A factor was the lack of suitable terrain for the forced landing.

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft 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. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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