- Date
- August 11, 1997, 14:05 local (19:05 UTC)
- Place
- Holcomb, MS
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N908BBell 47-D1
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report February 2, 1998
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19970811021649A
- Case key
- 3889
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The failure of the pilot to adequately see and avoid all obstructions while doing aerial application work.
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.
Analysis
The pilot stated the cotton field he was going to spray with insecticide was lined with utility lines. He circled the field '2 or 3 times to locate obstructions', and began spraying. After finishing about half the field, he struck a utility line that was 'hidden by the surrounding trees'. The nose pitched up, and the utility line wrapped around the helicopter's mast. The helicopter then rotated 150 to 160 degrees to the left, and it settled to the ground in a 'hard landing'.
Factual narrative
On August 11, 1997, at 1405 central daylight time, a Bell 47-D1, N908B, collided with utility lines while applying insecticide to a field in Holcomb, Mississippi. The helicopter was operated by Lanier Flying Service under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 137 and visual flight rules. The prevailing weather was visual meteorological conditions, and no flight plan was filed. The helicopter incurred substantial damage, and the commercial pilot was not injured. The aerial application flight originated from a field near Grenada, Mississippi at 1400.
The pilot of the helicopter stated the cotton field he was spraying was lined with a number of utility lines. He circled the field "2 or 3 times to locate obstructions" and believed he had determined where all the utility lines were located. He then began to spray the field with insecticide. When he had completed spraying about half of the field, the helicopter struck a utility line that was "hidden by the surrounding trees". According to the pilot, "the poles were hidden by the tree line, and the black lines blended with their surroundings". The pilot stated he "did not see the lines until just before impact". The nose of the helicopter then pitched up and allowed the utility line to wrap around the mast of the helicopter. The pilot stated the helicopter then rotated 150 to 160 degrees to the left, and it settled to the ground in a "hard landing".
No mechanical difficulties with the helicopter were reported by the pilot.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N908B
- Reported as
- Bell 47-D1
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 479
- Airframe hours
- 6,214
- Engine
- Lycoming VO-435, 265 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Registered owner
- Lanier Flying Service
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 14, 1997
- Departed
- NONE · Taylor, MS
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 45
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Center
- Flight hours
- 10,000 total · 3,000 in this make and model · 200 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 160° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 4,200 ft broken
- Temperature
- 90 °F, dew point 73 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- JAN, 180 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N908B · 7
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.