# Accident 20080805857529A: Skrsky S61N, Redding, CA, August 5, 2008

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: August 5, 2008, 19:40 local time
- Place: Redding, CA
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Takeoff
- Operating rules: Air taxi and commuter (Part 135)
- Location: 40.9142° N, 123.2525° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=40.9142&lon=-123.2525&mi=10
- Aircraft: N612AZ, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N612AZ-2017-05-23) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Sikorsky S-61N (registry code 8142104, https://openairdocs.org/model/sikorsky-s-61n) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: GE CT58-140-1 (registry code 30128, https://openairdocs.org/engine/ge-ct58-140-1) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: SKRSKY S61N
- People aboard: 9
- Fatal injuries: 9
- Pilot flight hours: 20,000 total, 11,000 in this make and model, 75 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX08PA259](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX08PA259) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20080805857529A

## Narrative

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

ON AUGUST 5, 2008, AT APPROXIMATELY 1940 PACIFIC DAYLIGT TIME, A SIKORSKY S-61N HELICOPTER, N612AZ, OPERATED BY CARSON HELICOPTER SERVICS INC., UNDER CONTRACT OF THE US FOREST SERVICE, IMPACTED TERRAIN WHILE DEPARTING HELO SPORT 44 ON THE BUCK HORN FIRE NE, CALIFORNIA.  THE FLIGHT WAS CONDUCTED UNDER 14 CODE OF REGULATIONS PART 91 PUBLIC USE AIRCRAFT.  THE FLIGHT DEPARTED FROM THE HELO SPORT 44 ON GREEN MOUNTAIN, NEAR JUNCTION CITY, CALIFORNIA, THE CAPTAIN, A US FOREST SERVICE INSPECTOR PILOT, AND SEVEN PASSENGERS WERE FATALLY INJURED.  THREE PASSENGERS AND THE FIRST OFFICER WERE SERIOUSLY INJURED.  VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT.  A US FOREST SERVICE AUTOMATIC FLIGHT FOLLOWING SYSTEM WAS BEING USED TO TRACK THE POSITION OF THE AIRCRAFT.  THE PURPOSE OF THE FLIGHT WAS TO TRANSPORT FIRE FIGHTERS TO THE HELI-BASE 36 IN WILLOW CREEK,CALIFORNIA AND RETURN TO HELI SPOT 44 TO PIC UP TEN MORE FIRE FIGHTER.  FLIGHT STANDARDS WILL TAKE ANY ACTIONS REQUIRED.

## 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 LAX08PA259](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX08PA259), Aug 6, 2008: Sikorsky S-61N (N612AZ), Weaverville, CA, destroyed, 9 fatal. Probable cause: The following actions by Carson Helicopters: 1) the intentional understatement of the helicopter's empty weight, 2) the alteration of the power available chart to exaggerate the helicopter's lift…

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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