CEN15TA017

The helicopter departed from level terrain and then drifted backward. The aft right skid then contacted a rock that was embedded in the ground, which resulted in the helicopter pivoting around the rock, the rotor blades impacting the ground, and the helicopter rolling over onto its right side. Examination of wreckage revealed no anomalies with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation. A review of data from the vehicle engine multifunction display revealed that all of the recorded failures were associated with the ground impact and that no preimpact anomalies occurred. The evidence is consistent with a dynamic rollover event.

On October 17, 2014, about 1245 mountain daylight time, an Airbus Helicopters AS350B3 helicopter, N852BP, rolled over on its right side during takeoff near Lordsburg, New Mexico. The pilot sustained minor injuries and the helicopter sustained substantial damage. The helicopter was registered to the United States Department of Homeland Security and operated by the United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a public use flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The flight was originating at the time of the accident. According to the CBP investigators, the helicopter departed from a level terrain area, drifted backward and the aft right skid contacted a rock, which was embedded in the ground and 10 inches of it was exposed. After contact, the helicopter hinged around a rock, the rotor blades impacted the ground and the helicopter rolled over to the right side. The fuselage was substantially damaged during the accident sequence. At 1256, the automated weather observation at the Bisbee Douglas International Airport, Douglas/Brisbee, Arizona, located 38 miles west of the accident site, reported: calm wind, visibility 10 miles, clear sky, temperature 79° Fahrenheit (F), dew point 39° F, and altimeter setting 30.08 inches of mercury. The CBP investigators examined the wreckage and determined that there were no anomalies with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation. Representatives from Airbus Helicopters downloaded and analyzed the data from the Vehicle Engine Multifunction Display (VEMD). All of the recorded failures were associated with the ground impact. The parameters associated with the failures and times of the failures did not indicate any preimpact anomalies.