# Accident 19970718018999A: Skrsky S58T, Page, AZ, July 18, 1997

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: July 18, 1997, 14:15 local time
- Place: Page, AZ
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Power On Descent (Rotorcraft)
- Operating rules: Rotorcraft external load (Part 133)
- Operator: ONRL
- Location: 36.6807° N, 111.4098° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=36.6807&lon=-111.4098&mi=10
- Aircraft: N47B, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N47B) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Sikorsky S-58T (registry code 8141800, https://openairdocs.org/model/sikorsky-s-58t) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-60A (registry code 52043, https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-canada-pt6a-60a) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: SKRSKY S58T
- Reported engine: PWA PT6T3
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 9,996 total, 4,750 in this make and model, 85 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX97LA247](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX97LA247) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19970718018999A

## Narrative

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

HELICOPTER OVER CONCRETE POUR SITE ON EXTERNAL LOAD, ENGINE BLEW UP, AIRCRAFT FLEW AWAY FROM AREA AND LANDED HARD. (.4)THE PILOT WAS HOVERING WITH AN EXTERNAL LOAD, WHEN HE HEARD A LOUD NOISE AND NOTICED A POWER LOSS. HE TURNED AND EXECUTED A PRECAUTIONARY LANDING WITH A HARD TOUCHDOWN. THE MAIN ROTOR BLADES FLEXED DOWNWARD AND IMPACTED THE TAIL BOOM. AN INSPECTION REVEALED THAT OVER HALF OF THE BLADES IN THE NO. 2 POWER SECTION WERE FRACTURED. A METALLURGICAL EXAMINATION REVEALED THAT TWO CONSECUTIVE BLADES SHOWED EVIDENCE OF SOLUTIONING AND RE-SOLIDIFICATION; HOWEVER, THE FRACTURE SURFACES DID NOT SHOW SIMILAR EVIDENCE OF HEAT DISTRESS. DISCOLORATION WAS ALSO FOUND ON THE POWER TURBINE WHEEL AT A POINT CORRESPONDING TO THE LOCATION OF THE TWO BLADES. THE OPERATOR STATED THAT THE AIRCRAFT HAD FLOWN ABOUT 138 HOURS SINCE ALL THE TURBINE BLADES WERE REPLACED. NONE OF THE PILOTS WHO HAD FLOWN THE AIRCRAFT SINCE THEN REPORTED EXPERIENCING ANY HUNG OR HOT STARTS.

## 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 LAX97LA247](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX97LA247), Jul 18, 1997: Sikorsky S-58T (N47B), Page, AZ, substantial damage. Probable cause: an engine failure resulting from the fracture of two power turbine blades, which had been previously subjected to a hot or hung start.

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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