# NTSB investigations: American Eurocopter AS350B3: Loss of control in flight

NTSB aviation accident and incident investigations since 1962: the probable cause, findings, aircraft, crew, weather and docket of each, linked to the FAA registry and the FAA’s own reports.

## Latest cases

- [NTSB WPR25FA062](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR25FA062.md): American Eurocopter AS350B3 · Potrero, CA · Accident · 1 fatal · Class 3 · Field · Final report · Dec 16, 2024 · N617GC · Substantial damage
  > The pilot’s loss of control during cruise flight due to incapacitation for reasons that could not be determined.
- [NTSB CEN19FA018](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN19FA018.md): Eurocopter AS350 · Odanah, WI · Accident · 1 fatal · Field investigation · Final report · Oct 29, 2018 · N910S · Destroyed
  > The pilot's loss of helicopter control for undetermined reasons.
- [NTSB WPR16LA019](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR16LA019.md): American Eurocopter AS350B3 · Folsom, CA · Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report · Oct 24, 2015 · N911WL · Substantial damage
  > The flight instructor's failure to perform simulated engine failure training in accordance with manufacturer guidance, including his improper recovery from the maneuver, which resulted in an overshoot of the intended landing zone when the engine did not…
- [NTSB GAA15CA258](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/GAA15CA258.md): Airbus AS350 · Draper, UT · Accident · No injuries · Data collection · Final report · Sep 9, 2015 · N253HP · Substantial damage
  > The ground recovery team member's failure to secure a rescue rope during the helicopter loading process in steep terrain, resulting in the rope fouling the helicopter's main rotor system.
- [NTSB CEN15MA290](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN15MA290.md): Airbus Helicopters AS350B3E · Frisco, CO · Accident · 1 fatal · Class 1 · Major · Final report · Jul 3, 2015 · N390LG · Destroyed
  > Airbus Helicopters' dual-hydraulic AS350 B3e helicopter's (1) preflight hydraulic check, which depleted hydraulic pressure in the tail rotor hydraulic circuit, and (2) lack of salient alerting to the pilot that hydraulic pressure was not restored before…
- [NTSB WPR14GA281](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR14GA281.md): American Eurocopter AS350B3 · Fallon, NV · Accident · Minor injuries · Final report · Jul 4, 2014 · N832PA · Substantial damage
  > A loss of tail rotor effectiveness, which resulted in an uncontrolled rotation and descent into terrain. Contributing to the accident was a sudden shift in wind conditions and the helicopter's high power demand condition due to its load weight and operating…
- [NTSB CEN14FA193](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN14FA193.md): Airbus AS350 B3E · Albuquerque, NM · Accident · Minor injuries · Field investigation · Final report · Apr 9, 2014 · N395P · Substantial damage
  > The pilot's loss of yaw control during takeoff due to the absence of hydraulic boost to the tail rotor pedals for reasons that could not be determined based on the available information. A finding in the accident was the lack of a caution indicator to alert…
- [NTSB WPR13TA051](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR13TA051.md): Eurocopter AS350B3 2B1 · Newfield, AZ · Accident · Minor injuries · Final report · Nov 23, 2012 · N3984A · Substantial damage
  > The pilot's distraction while retrieving an item behind him while the helicopter was on the ground with the engine running, which led to his aggressive overapplication of the flight controls after experiencing a ground resonance condition and subsequent loss…

## The whole list in SQL

Runs in DuckDB 1.2 or later on the release's Parquet files over HTTPS:

```sql
SELECT c."ntsbNumber", c."eventDate", c."eventType", c."eventCity", c."eventStateOrRegion", a.n_number, a."aircraftMake", a."aircraftModel", c."highestInjuryLevel", c."totalFatal", c."completionStatus", c.report_url
FROM 'https://openairdocs.org/data/latest/ntsb_case_detail.parquet' c LEFT JOIN 'https://openairdocs.org/data/latest/ntsb_aircrafts.parquet' a ON a.case_mkey = c."mKey" AND a.position = 1
WHERE c."mKey" IN (SELECT x.case_mkey FROM 'https://openairdocs.org/data/latest/ntsb_aircrafts.parquet' x WHERE x.aircraft_model_code IN ('1145004', '1145002')
    AND EXISTS (SELECT 1 FROM 'https://openairdocs.org/data/latest/ntsb_events.parquet' s WHERE s.case_mkey = x.case_mkey AND s.aircrafts_position = x.position AND s."tier2Number" = '240' AND s.case_mkey IN (SELECT case_mkey FROM 'https://openairdocs.org/data/latest/ntsb_events.parquet' WHERE "isDefiningEvent")))
ORDER BY c."eventDate" DESC, c."ntsbNumber" DESC
```

This list as a web page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/240/sequence?model=1145004

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