# Accident 20060406004839A: Snias AS350BA, Haines, AK, April 6, 2006

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: April 6, 2006, 15:50 local time
- Place: Haines, AK
- Airport: Haines Airport
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Hovering
- Operating rules: Air taxi and commuter (Part 135)
- Operator: XCHA
- Location: 59.0744° N, 135.2736° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=59.0744&lon=-135.2736&mi=10
- Aircraft: N209CH, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N209CH-2018-03-07) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Aerospatiale AS350BA (registry code 8680817, https://openairdocs.org/model/aerospatiale-as350ba) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Turbomeca ARRIEL-1SER (registry code 60030, https://openairdocs.org/engine/turbomeca-arriel-1ser) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: SNIAS AS350BA
- Reported engine: LYC LTS101600A
- People aboard: 3
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 18,000 total, 400 in this make and model, 45 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ANC06LA044](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC06LA044) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20060406004839A

## Narrative

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

(-23) ON 4/06/2006, APPROX 1550 ADT, A EUROCOPTER AS-350-BA HELICOPTER, N209CH, SUSTAINED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE WHEN, WHILE IN HOVERING FLIGHT, ITS MAIN ROTOR BLADES STRUCK THE TOP OF A SMALL TREE DURING LANDING ON TALSANI ISLAND, ALASKA. THE COASTAL HELICOPTERS INC AIRCRAFT WAS BEING OPERATED AS A VFR, ON-DEMAND, CHARTER UNDER TITLE 14 CFR PART 135. THE ATP CERTIFICATE PILOT AND TWO PASSENGERS WERE NOT INJURED. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AND VFR COMPANY FLIGHT FOLLOWING PROCEDURES WERE IN EFFECT. THE PILOT STATED THAT DURING LANDING AT THE FAR END OF A LARGE LZ AND JUST BEFORE TOUCHDOWN, THE MAIN ROTOR BLADES STRUCK THE TOP OF A SMALL TREE. THE PILOT SAID THAT HE VISUALLY INSPECTED EACH BLADE AND DISCOVERED ONLY GREEN TRANSFER STAINS FROM THE TREE AND NO OTHER VISIBLE DAMAGE. WHEN INSPECTED BY A COMPANY MECHANIC UPON RETURN TO THE JUNEAU AIRPORT, DAMAGE WAS DISCOVERED. THE DAMAGE, ALTHOUGH NOT VISIBLE TO THE NAKED EYE, COULD BE DETECTED BY A CAREFUL TACTILE INSPECTION AND EXCEEDED THE CRITERIA IN THE MAINTENANCE MANUAL. THE DIRECTOR OF MAINTENANCE INDICATED THAT THE ROTOR BLADES COULD NOT BE REPAIRED AT HIS FACILITY, AND WERE BEING SENT TO A BLADE REPAIR FACILITY.

## 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 ANC06LA044](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC06LA044), Apr 6, 2006: Aerospatiale AS-350BA (N209CH), Haines, AK, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to maintain adequate clearance from an object while landing a helicopter at a remote site, 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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