19990505046589A

Accident · No damage

FAA accident report · Beech F90 · Wrangell, AK · May 5, 1999

Date: May 5, 1999 · 15:00 local
Place: Wrangell, AK
Operating rules: Rotorcraft external load (Part 133)
Operator: W94L
Damage: No damage
Aircraft: N97HM
NTSB investigation: NTSBANC99TA058
Fatal injuries: 1

N97HMRegistered now · Beech F90S/N LA44 Airframe modelBeech F90

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.

(-23) Helicopter was conducting a category b external load operation with a 110 foot wire cable. The operation was being conducted within 20 feet of high voltage, high tension power lines. During the process of hooking up the external load the cable contacted the high tension line electrocuting a ground crewman.

As the FAA filed it

(-23) HELICOPTER WAS CONDUCTING A CATEGORY B EXTERNAL LOAD OPERATION WITH A 110 FOOT WIRE CABLE. THE OPERATION WAS BEING CONDUCTED WITHIN 20 FEET OF HIGH VOLTAGE, HIGH TENSION POWER LINES. DURING THE PROCESS OF HOOKING UP THE EXTERNAL LOAD THE CABLE CONTACTED THE HIGH TENSION LINE ELECTROCUTING A GROUND CREWMAN.

NTSB investigation

The NTSB’s investigation of this event, with its probable cause and findings. Matched to this report by N-number and date.

NTSB ANC99TA058Accident · 1 fatalFinal reportWrangell, AKThe pilot-in-command's failure to maintain sufficient distance from a transmission wire, arcing of the transmission wire, the failure of company personnel to utilize a nonconducting cable, and an inadequate procedure utilized by the construction project…May 5, 1999 · No damage