# Accident 20041012032279A: Snias AS350B2, Ketchikan, AK, October 12, 2004

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: October 12, 2004, 12:30 local time
- Place: Ketchikan, AK
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Unknown/Not Reported
- Operating rules: Air taxi and commuter (Part 135)
- Operator: ERAA
- Location: 55.2500° N, 131.3000° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=55.2500&lon=-131.3000&mi=10
- Aircraft: N166EH (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: SNIAS AS350B2
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 3,319 total, 1,585 in this make and model, 240 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ANC05LA010](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC05LA010) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20041012032279A

## Narrative

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

(-23) THE AIRCRAFT WAS IN THE PROCESS OF DROPPING PASSENGERS AT SEVERAL DIFFERENT LOCATIONS THROUGHOUT THE DAY, IN AND AROUND TALL TREES AND IN MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN. WHILE ON APPROACH TO HIS LANDING SITE (FIG 2), THE PILOT NOTICED A VIBRATION WHILE LANDING. AFTER LANDING, THE PILOT SHUTDOWN THE AIRCRAFT TO INVESTIGATE AND FOUND THE UNDERSIDE OF THE MAIN ROTOR BLADES DENTED/SCUFFED (FIG 1). THE SITE DID NOT HAVE ANY OBSTACLES OR OBJECTS TALL ENOUGH TO MAKE CONTACT WITH THE MAIN ROTOR BLADES SO IT WAS SUSPECTED A BLADE STRIKE OCCURRED SOMEWHERE AT OR NEAR HIS LAST LANDING SITE WHICH WAS APPROXIMATELY 1 MILE AWAY. THE PILOT DOES NOT REMEMBER HITTING ANYTHING DURING HIS APPROACH OR DEPARTURE FROM THE PREVIOUS SITE, NOR DOES HE KNOW OF ANY OBSTACLES WITHIN THE ROTOR ARC OF HIS FINAL LANDING SITE. THE PILOT CALLED BACK TO BASE FOR ASSISTANCE, AIRCRAFT LATER WAS SLUNG OUT OF THE SITE, AIRCRAFT WAS INSPECTED AND MAIN ROTOR BLADES WERE INSTALLED AND THE AIRCRAFT WAS RETURNED TO SERVICE. THE REMOVED BLADES WERE DETERMINED BY A REPAIR FACILITY TO BE UNREPAIRABLE.

## 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 ANC05LA010](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC05LA010), Oct 12, 2004: Eurocopter France AS-350B2 (N166EH), Ketchikan, AK, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from an object while landing, which resulted in the main rotor blades striking a tree.

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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