# Incident 20160306001659I: Bell Helicopter Textron Canada 407, Palm Beach, FL, March 6, 2016

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: March 6, 2016, 08:17 local time
- Place: Palm Beach, FL
- Damage: Minor damage
- Phase of flight: Cruise/Level Flight
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 26.6948° N, 80.0419° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs: center of Palm Beach, FL, within about 6 miles (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=26.6948&lon=-80.0419&mi=10
- Aircraft: N795RB (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: BELL HELICOPTER TEXTRON CANADA 407
- Reported engine: ROLLS-ROYC 250-C47B
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Commercial pilot, private pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 1,450 total, 1,195 in this make and model, 56 in the last 90 days
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20160306001659I

## Narrative

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

AIRCRAFT WAS FLYING 4NM, NE OF WEST PALM BEACH INTERNATIONAL (PBI), SOUTHEAST BOUND, AT 300 FT. AGL/110 KTS. THE PILOT HAD JUST RECEIVED A CLEARANCE FROM THE TOWER CONTROLLER TO PROCEED INBOUND TO PBI ON THE OCEAN NORTH ARRIVAL. THAT IS WHEN, THE COPILOT SAW THE BIRD, AND CALLED OUT "BIRD" BUT THE PILOT DID NOT HAVE ENOUGH TIME TO RESPOND DUE TO THE BIRD BEING AT CLOSE PROXIMITY TO THE AIRCRAFT. THE SEA GULL BROKE THROUGH THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE WINDSHIELD, STRUCK THE BACK SIDE OF RIGHT INSTRUMENT PANEL, AND THEN STRUCK THE PILOT IN THE HELMET. THE BIRD CAME TO FINAL REST IN THE PILOT'S LAP.  THE PILOT CONTINUED FLIGHT AND SLOWED THE AIRCRAFT TO 60 KTS TO PREVENT ADDITIONAL DAMAGE TO THE WINDSHIELD. HE CONTACTED THE TOWER CONTROLLER TO INFORM OF THE BIRD STRIKE AND WAS CLEARED TO LAND AT THE SHERIFF?S HANGER. ONLY A MINOR SCRATCH TO THE PILOT'S MOUTH WAS REPORTED. THE AIRCRAFT SUSTAINED DAMAGE TO THE RIGHT, LOWER SIDE OF THE WINDSHIELD. BOTH PILOTS WERE WEARING HELMETS, AND STRAPPED TO THEIR SEATS PROPERLY.  BIRD STRIKE FAA FORM 5200.7 WAS SUBMITTED BY THE PALM BEACH SHERIFF OFFICE.

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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