ATL85FA135

NTSB accident investigation · Bell 206L-1 · Prestonburg, KY · April 16, 1985

Accident · Serious injuriesField investigationFinal report
Date
April 16, 1985, 14:40 local (19:40 UTC)
Place
Prestonburg, KY
Injuries
1 serious
Damage
Substantial damage
Phase of flight
Enroute
Aircraft
N773WWBell 206L-1
Weather
Visual (VMC) · Day
Status
Completed
Report
Approved by Office Director
Safety recommendations
Yes
FAA report
19850416014239A
Case key
6604

From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.

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Sequence of events

NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.

Loss of engine powerCruise
Fuel system - undeterminedCause
Fluid,fuel - starvationCause
Forced landingDescent - emergency
Autorotation - performedPilot in command
In flight collision with objectApproach - vfr pattern - final approach
Terrain condition - high obstruction(s)Factor
Maneuver - performedPilot in command
Object - tree(s)Factor

Analysis

The pax deplaned & the plt took off on a short flt to a nearby arpt to refuel. After climbing for about 30 to 40 sec & accelerating to aprx 100 KTS, the plt started to adjust the pwr for lvl flt. At about that time, the eng lost pwr. The plt attempted to restore eng pwr, but was unable. He turned to land in a large field that he had just overflown. Drgan autorotation, the eng stabilized at idle RPM, but would not respond to throttle movements. The plt saw power lines in his autorotation path & elected to cross over a creek & a row of trees & land in another field. However, the heli- copter had insufficient alt to clear the trees. Subsequently, it hit the trees & crash landed on a creek bank. After landing, the eng was still running & was shut down by using the fuel shut-off sw. The aft fuel cell was punctured drg impact; therefore, the amount of fuel on board could not be determined. The eng operated drg a post-crash check, but impact damage prevented operating it at high RPM. No preimpact part failure or malfunction was verified.

Aircraft

Registration
N773WW
Reported as
Bell 206L-1
Category
Helicopter
Serial number
45744
Airframe hours
6,837
Engine
Allison 250-C28B, 500 horsepower, turbo shaft
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Positioning · Part 91
Registered owner
Wilkinson Flying Service
Airworthiness certificate
Standard, Normal
Last inspection
100 hour · January 28, 1985 · 882 hours before
Destination
316

Flight crew

As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.

Role
Pilot
Age
34
Certificate
Commercial
Airplane ratings
Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
Instrument ratings
Airplane, Helicopter
Medical
Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
Seat
Right
Flight hours
5,433 total · 121 in this make and model · 5,028 as pilot in command · 93 in the last 90 days · 7 in the last 24 hours

Weather

Conditions
Visual (VMC) · Day
Wind
225° at 6 knots
Visibility
7 statute miles
Lowest ceiling
4,000 ft broken
Temperature
77 °F

FAA reports on this event · 1

The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.