20140105002489A

Accident · Substantial damage

FAA accident report · Bell 430 · Venice, LA · January 5, 2014

Date: January 5, 2014 · 10:30 local
Place: Venice, LA
Phase of flight: Landing: Approach
Operating rules: Air taxi and commuter (Part 135)
Operator: AC2A
Damage: Substantial damage
Aircraft: N430CT
NTSB investigation: NTSBCEN14LA103
Reported as: Bell 430
Reported engine: Rolls-Royce 250-C40B
People aboard: 1
Fatal injuries: 0
Other injuries: 0
Pilot’s certificate: Airline transport
Pilot’s flight hours: 10,050 total1,000 in this make and model103 in the last 90 days

N430CTRegistration cancelled Dec 31, 2022 · Bell 430S/N 49089 · Built 2002 Airframe modelBell 430 Engine modelRolls-Royce 250-C40BTurbo-shaft

From the FAA’s Accident/Incident Data System (AIDS), through its Aviation Safety Information Portal, as reported. The NTSB investigates accidents separately, and its record of an accident is the fuller one. The aircraft is matched to the registry 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.

What happened

The FAA’s narrative, in sentence case. The FAA writes it in capitals and removes private details.

Pilot was distracted with personal issues on short final to an offshore heliport. She allowed aircraft to make contact with hand rail on the gantry of the crane. She was unaware of the contact until she was about to set the aircraft down and it developed a severe vibration. Aircraft was landed safely, damage was discovered at completion of shutdown .

As the FAA filed it

PILOT WAS DISTRACTED WITH PERSONAL ISSUES ON SHORT FINAL TO AN OFFSHORE HELIPORT. SHE ALLOWED AIRCRAFT TO MAKE CONTACT WITH HAND RAIL ON THE GANTRY OF THE CRANE. SHE WAS UNAWARE OF THE CONTACT UNTIL SHE WAS ABOUT TO SET THE AIRCRAFT DOWN AND IT DEVELOPED A SEVERE VIBRATION. AIRCRAFT WAS LANDED SAFELY, DAMAGE WAS DISCOVERED AT COMPLETION OF SHUTDOWN .

NTSB investigation

The NTSB’s investigation of this event, with its probable cause and findings. Matched to this report by N-number and date.

NTSB CEN14LA103Accident · No injuriesLimited investigationFinal reportWest Delta 109The pilot’s failure to maintain tail rotor clearance from a handrail on a crane davit on an oil platform during landing.Jan 5, 2014 · Substantial damage