# Incident 20171205022709I: Bell BHT-407, Watkins, CO, December 5, 2017

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: December 5, 2017, 14:37 local time
- Place: Watkins, CO
- Airport: Front Range
- Damage: Minor damage
- Phase of flight: Maneuver
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Operator: QMLA
- Location: 39.6984° N, 104.5772° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs: center of Watkins, CO, within about 6 miles (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.6984&lon=-104.5772&mi=10
- Aircraft: N686AM, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N686AM) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Bell 407 (registry code 1182206, https://openairdocs.org/model/bell-407) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Allison 250-C20 series (registry code 03020, https://openairdocs.org/engine/allison-250-c20-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: BELL BHT-407
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Airline transport, flight instructor
- Pilot flight hours: 6,100 total, 6,000 in this make and model, 50 in the last 90 days
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20171205022709I

## Narrative

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

ON DECEMBER 5, 2017 AT 1437 HOURS, A BELL HELICOPTER MODEL 407, N686AM, SERIAL NUMBER 53160, SUSTAINED MINOR DAMAGES, FOLLOWING A HARD LANDING, WHILE PERFORMING A ROUTINE MAINTENANCE CHECK FLIGHT AUTOROTATION, AT FRONT RANGE AIRPORT (FTG) IN WATKINS, COLORADO.

DAY VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED. THE AIRCRAFT, REGISTERED TO AIR METHODS CORPORATION, WAS BEING OPERATED UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF 14 CFR PART 91. THE PILOT AND MECHANIC ONBOARD SUSTAINED NO INJURIES.

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.

---
OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.