# Accident 20050612011999A: Bell 206L3, Durango, CO, June 12, 2005

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: June 12, 2005, 16:30 local time
- Place: Durango, CO
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Pwr On Vertical Ldng/Rtrcrft
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 37.5850° N, 107.6919° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=37.5850&lon=-107.6919&mi=10
- Aircraft: N81EA (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: BELL 206L3
- People aboard: 4
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 4,530 total, 4 in this make and model, 109 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB DEN05LA089](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/DEN05LA089) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20050612011999A

## Narrative

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

(-23) PILOT'S STATEMENT: I DEPARTED TALL TIMBERS WITH THREE PASSENGERS (ABOUT 400 POUNDS AND 310 POUNDS OF FUEL) TO LOCATE AND MOVE A REPEATER THEY HAD PLACED THE DAY BEFORE. IT WAS NEAR RUBY, EMERALD, AND PEAR LAKES. SHOWERS AND LOW CLOUDS (FORECASTED) PREVENTED US FROM GOING DIRECTLY TO THE AREA. AFTER THREE ATTEMPTS FROM DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS, WE WERE ABLE TO GET TO THAT SITE. THE FIRST ATTEMPT THERE WAS TOO MUCH SLOPE TO LAND AND IT WAS ABOUT THIRTY FEET TO SOUTHWEST. THE SECOND ATTEMPT WAS ON THE SAME KNOLL THAT THE REPEATER WAS. I LANDED BUT IT WAS UNSTABLE SO I DECIDED TO REPOSITION. I WAS MANEUVERING SLIGHTLY ABOVE EFFECTIVE TRANSLATIONAL LIFT AT ABOUT 11,900 FEET. I MADE A LEFT ORBIT, AS I WAS ABEAM THE LANDING AREA I SAW A LEVEL SPOT TO LAND. I TURNED FINAL AND BEGAN AN APPROACH. I NOTICED TO THE LEFT THE TREES WERE LAYING OVER (A VERY STRONG GUST). ETL WAS LOST, I ATTEMPTED A PEDAL TURN INTO THE WIND. AT FIRST THE NOSE DID NOT TURN THEN IT TOOK OFF TO THE LEFT I IMMEDIATELY APPLIED RIGHT PEDAL TO ARREST THE RATE OF TURN AND WENT TO THE STOP. I SIMULTANEOUSLY REDUCED POWER NEUTRALIZED THE PEDALS AND APPLIED FORWARD CYCLIC. THE RATE OF TURN ACCELERATED AND PINNED ME BACK INTHE SEAT. I DO NOT BELIEVE WE MADE TWO REVOLUTIONS BEFORE IMPACT. THE AIRCRAFT STRUCK THE GROUND DRIFTING THE SOUTHEAST RIGHT AFT SKID THE TAIL BOOM AND ROLLED ON THE RIGHT SIDE. I ROLLED OFF THE THROTTLE TURNED OFF THE BATTERY AND BOOST PUMPS, ASSISTED THE PASSENGERS OUT AND DISCONNECTED THE BATTERY. WE WERE IN RADIO CONTACT WITH TALL TIMBERS SO I ATTEMPTED TO TURN OFF THE EMERGENCY LOCATOR TRANSMITTER BUT COULD ONLY DISCONNECT THE ANTENNA.

## 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 DEN05LA089](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/DEN05LA089), Jun 12, 2005: Bell 206L-3 (N81EA), Cascade, CO, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control during the attempted landing on mountainous terrain. A contributing factor was strong wind gusts during the attempted 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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