# Accident 20200602009229A: Bell 206L-3, Fairfield, CA, June 2, 2020 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: June 2, 2020, 13:27 local time - Place: Fairfield, CA - Damage: Substantial damage - Phase of flight: Maneuver - Operating rules: Rotorcraft external load (Part 133) - Operator: AWTL - Location: 38.3097° N, 122.0339° W: From the FAA - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=38.3097&lon=-122.0339&mi=10 - Aircraft: N65PJ, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N65PJ-2022-07-30) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Bell 206L-3 (registry code 1182108, https://openairdocs.org/model/bell-206l-3) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: Allison 250-C30 series (registry code 03015, https://openairdocs.org/engine/allison-250-c30-series) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: BELL 206L-3 - Reported engine: ALLISON 250-C30 SER - People aboard: 1 - Fatal injuries: 3 - Other injuries: 0 - Pilot certificates: Commercial pilot, flight instructor, private pilot - Pilot flight hours: 3,532 total, 1,222 in this make and model, 265 in the last 90 days - NTSB investigation: [NTSB WPR20LA163](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR20LA163) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20200602009229A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. ON JUNE 2, 2020, ABOUT 1330 PACIFIC DAYLIGHT TIME, A BELL 206-L3, N65PJ, WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED DURING A HUMAN EXTERNAL CARGO (HEC) OPERATION, IN SUPPORT OF POWER LINE WORK .93 MILES WEST OF INTERSTATE 80 ALONG SODA SPRINGS ROAD, BETWEEN VACAVILLE AND FAIRFIELD CALIFORNIA. THE COMMERCIAL PILOT AND TWO LINEMAN ATTACHED TO A 60 FOOT LINE UNDER THE AIRCRAFT WERE FATALLY INJURED. THE HELICOPTER WAS OPERATED BY ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF TITLE 14 CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS PART 133. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AND NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED FOR THIS FLIGHT IN SUPPORT OF POWER LINE WORK. THE DAY OF THE ACCIDENT, OPERATIONS BEGAN AT NUT TREE AIRPORT VACAVILLE, CA. (KVCB) WHERE THE AIRCRAFT WAS PARKED OVERNIGHT. IT IS APPROXIMATELY 7.24 MILES FROM THE AIRPORT TO THE LANDING SPOT (LZ) THAT WAS USED TO WORK FROM THAT DAY. POWER LINE CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT, A WATER TRUCK AND FUEL TRUCK WERE STAGED AT THIS LOCATION WHICH IS APPROXIMATELY .74 MILES FROM THE ACCIDENT SITE IN ROLLING FOOTHILL TERRAIN. THE FUEL TRUCK DRIVER STATED HE ARRIVED AT THE LZ ABOUT 9:00 AM AND THE AIRCRAFT AND PILOT WAS THERE WAITING. FLIGHT OPERATIONS BEGAN ABOUT 11:00 -11:30. THE TERRAIN WAS LOW ELEVATION STEEP FOOTHILLS/CANYONS WITH THE POWERLINE TOWERS ON THE TOPS OF THE HILLS AND THE POWERLINE WIRES SPANNING THE LOW HILL VALLEYS/CANYONS. THE INFORMATION BELLOW IS PRIMARILY DERIVED FROM A WITNESS WHO OBSERVED THE ACCIDENT SEQUENCE AND HEARD RADIO TRANSMISSIONS FROM THE PILOT AND LINEMEN: AT APPROXIMATELY 12:50 THE PILOT WAS HAILED ON THE RADIO TO PICKUP THE TWO UTILITY LINEMAN. THE RADIO TRANSMISSIONS INDICATE THAT THE PILOT LEFT THE LZ AND FLEW TO THE TOWER, APPROXIMATELY 3/4THS OF A MILE AND DESCENDED WITH AN EMPTY LONGLINE TO PICK THE LINEMAN UP AS A HUMAN EXTERNAL CARGO LOAD FROM A TOWER. BASED ON THE EYEWITNESS AND RADIO TRAFFIC HE HEARD THE PILOT PROCEEDED AT THE REQUEST OF THE LINEMAN TO FLY THEM TO THE GROUND IN THE CANYON BETWEEN THE TOWERS THEY HAD JUST BEEN FLOWN FROM. THE LINEMAN WERE DELIVERED TO THE GROUND AND UNHOOKED FROM THE LONGLINE. THE PILOT THEN HOVERED OR ORBITED IN THE AREA FOR A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME BEFORE BEING ASKED BY THE LINEMAN TO COME BACK AND PICK THEM UP. AN EYEWITNESS OBSERVED THE HELICOPTER DESCEND BACK INTO THE CANYON WITH AN EMPTY LONGLINE, AND THE AIRCRAFT DISAPPEARED BEHIND A HILL THAT WAS OBSTRUCTING THE FULL VIEW OF THE EYEWITNESS. THE EYEWITNESS THEN REPORTED SEEING THE HELICOPTER ASCEND BACK INTO VIEW, AND WHILE ASCENDING THE MAIN ROTOR OF THE HELICOPTER CONTACTED A POWERLINE OVER THE CANYON RESULTING IN THE DESTRUCTION OF THE ROTOR SYSTEM CAUSING THE AIRCRAFT TO FALL INTO THE CANYON. THE OBSERVER LOST SIGHT OF THE HELICOPTER AFTER IT FELL OUT OF VIEW, BUT BASED ON ITS RESTING PLACE IT IS ASSUMED THAT IT FELL STRAIGHT DOWN INTO THE HILL AND THEN ROLLED DOWN THE HILL AND CAME TO REST IN A SMALL DRAINAGE. THE POWERLINE WAS SEVERED AND A SMALL GRASS FIRE BURNED UP THE OPPOSITE HILLSIDE. THE AIRCRAFT WAS NOT DAMAGED BY THE FIRE. THE LINEMAN WERE STILL ATTACHED TO THE AIRCRAFT BY MEANS OF THE SECONDARY HOOK, THE MAIN CARGO HOOK HAD BEEN RELEASED. THERE WAS FUEL IN THE FUEL TANK (APROX. 20-25 GAL.) THE ELT WAS TRIGGERED AND OPERATING. ## 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 WPR20LA163](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR20LA163), Jun 2, 2020: Bell 206 (N65PJ), Fairfield, CA, substantial damage, 3 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot’s failure to maintain adequate clearance from powerlines while conducting external load operations, which resulted in the main rotor contacting a wire and a subsequent collision with… 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.