- Date
- October 18, 2007, 11:05 local (17:05 UTC)
- Place
- Medora, ND
- Injuries
- 2 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N51698Bell 206B-III
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report December 20, 2007
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAR FSDO
- FAA report
- 20071018824639A
- Case key
- 66984
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 pilot failed to maintain clearance from the fence while maneuvering at a low altitude, which resuled in the helicopter rolling over and impacting the terrain. A factor associated with the accident was the fence.
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 lost control of the helicopter and it impacted the terrain after a skid caught the top of a wire fence. The helicopter was being used for a herding mission when the left skid caught the top wire of a ten foot high fence. The helicopter began a dynamic roll to the left and impacted the ground. The pilot reported trying to counteract the roll by "reducing the power and adjusting the cyclic but was unsuccessful."
Factual narrative
The helicopter impacted the terrain after a skid caught the top of a wire fence. The helicopter was being used for a herding mission when the left skid caught the top wire of a ten foot high fence. The helicopter began a dynamic roll to the left and impacted the ground. The pilot reported trying to counteract the roll by "reducing the power and adjusting the cyclic but was unsuccessful." The main rotor blades were destroyed, the main rotor system separated from the mast, the main transmisison deck ripped from the fuselage and the tailboom separated from the fuselage. The pilot and passenger received minor injuries.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N51698
- Reported as
- Bell 206B-III
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 4010
- Airframe hours
- 11,967
- Engine
- Rolls-Royce 250-C20R-2, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Public aircraft - federal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- El Aero Services
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · September 1, 2007
- Departed
- Medora, ND
- Destination
- Medora, ND
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
- 69
- Injuries
- Minor
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- July 1, 2007
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 35,000 total · 21,000 in this make and model · 300 in the last 90 days · 100 in the last 30 days · 5 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 338° at 10 knots, gusting 21
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 2,900 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 45 °F, dew point 43 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.55 inHg
- Observed at
- 4 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.