# Accident 20130102000129A: Bell Helicopter Textron Canada 407, Ventura, IA, January 2, 2013

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: January 2, 2013, 20:56 local time
- Place: Ventura, IA
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Landing: Touchdown
- Operating rules: Air taxi and commuter (Part 135)
- Operator: M3XA
- Location: 43.1428° N, 93.4828° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=43.1428&lon=-93.4828&mi=10
- Aircraft: N445MT, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N445MT-2014-05-31) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Bell Helicopter Textron Canada 407 (registry code 1182154, https://openairdocs.org/model/bell-helicopter-textron-canada-407) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Rolls-Royce 250-C47B (registry code 54585, https://openairdocs.org/engine/rolls-royce-250-c47b) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: BELL HELICOPTER TEXTRON CANADA 407
- Reported engine: ROLLS-ROYC 250-C47B
- People aboard: 3
- Fatal injuries: 3
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Airline transport, commercial pilot, flight instructor
- Pilot flight hours: 2,808 total, 29 in this make and model, 29 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CEN13FA122](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN13FA122) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20130102000129A

## Narrative

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

N445MT, A BELL 407, DEPARTED MERCY MEDICAL CENTER IN MASON CITY, IOWA AT 20:45 CST. THE DESTINATION WAS EMMETSBURG, IOWA TO PICK UP A PATIENT. THE PILOT AND CREW WERE WEARING NIGHT VISION GOGGLES. WEATHER RADAR SHOWED VFR CONDITIONS, BUT AN IOWA STATE TROOPER STATED THAT AROUND THAT TIME RAIN TURNED TO FREEZING RAIN AND THE ROADS BECAME VERY SLICK. THIS AIRCRAFT IS NOT DESIGNED TO OPERATE IN ICING CONDITIONS. AN EYE WITNESS STATED SHE SAW THE AIRCRAFT APPROXIMATELY 200 FEET AGL, AT A 20 TO 25 DEGREE NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE TRAVELING IN AN EAST TO WEST DIRECTION.IN A COMMUNICATION WITH THE COMPANY COM CENTER THE PILOT STATED HIS ROUTE TO EMMETSBURG WOULD BE VIA ALGONA TO AVOID WEATHER. THERE IS ALSO A TRANSMISSION BETWEEN THE COM CENTER AND THE HELICOPTER IN WHICH THE CREW WAS RECEIVING PATIENT INFORMATION. DURING THIS TRANSMISSION A FAINT BROADCAST CAN BE HEARD WHICH SOUNDS LIKE THE PILOT STATING "DISPATCH, I'M REALLY SORRY, BUT PUT ME ON THE GROUND..." THE REMAINDER OF THE PILOT'S TRANSMISSION CAN NOT BE UNDERSTOOD AS THE COM CENTER SIGNAL WAS MUCH STRONGER. A FLIGHT TRACK OF THE AIRCRAFT SHOWS THE PILOT OVER HIGHWAY 18 UNTIL REACHING VENTURA, IOWA AT WHICH TIME HE TURNED SHARPLY TO THE NORTH WEST; THIS OCCURED 11 MINUTES INTO THE FLIGHT. THE AIRCRAFT IMPACTED THE GROUND 4 MILES NORTH OF VENTURA. THE FUEL TANK RUPTURED. THERE WAS A POST CRASH FIRE, THE AIRCRAFT WAS DESTROYED AND THE CREW KILLED.

## 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 CEN13FA122](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN13FA122), Jan 3, 2013: Bell Helicopter 407 (N445MT), Clear Lake, IA, destroyed, 3 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot’s inadvertent encounter with localized icing conditions and his subsequent in-flight loss of helicopter control.

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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