# Accident 20181116022559A: Bell OH-58C, Verbena, AL, November 16, 2018

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: November 16, 2018, 11:30 local time
- Place: Verbena, AL
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Cruise/Level Flight
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 32.8222° N, 86.4592° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=32.8222&lon=-86.4592&mi=10
- Aircraft: N510CP, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N510CP-2022-06-04) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Bell OH-58A (registry code 1181579, https://openairdocs.org/model/bell-oh-58a) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: BELL OH-58C
- Reported engine: ALLISON A720
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 2
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Commercial pilot, flight instructor
- Pilot flight hours: 4,500 total, 216 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ERA19FA047](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA19FA047) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20181116022559A

## Narrative

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

ACCIDENT HELICOPTER WAS TRAVELING FROM COLUMBUS GA (KCSG), STOPPED IN AUBURN AL (KAUO) AND PICKED UP THE PASSENGER, CONTINUED TOWARDS CLANTON AL (02A) WHEN THE HELICOPTER STRUCK POWER LINES CROSSING THE COOSA RIVER, CRASHED, AND SANK IN 70 FEET OF WATER. NO SURVIVORS.

## 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 ERA19FA047](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA19FA047), Nov 16, 2018: Bell OH 58C (N510CP), Verbena, AL, substantial damage, 2 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's improper decision to conduct a low-level flight over a river, and his failure to see and avoid power lines, which resulted in the helicopter's impact with power lines and the water.

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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