- Date
- May 29, 1982, 09:00 local (13:00 UTC)
- Place
- Le Sueur, MN
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N4251ABell 47D1
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 29, 1983
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19820529020149A
- Case key
- 71397
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
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
During a spraying operation, the aircraft was being refueled from a 200 gal fuel tank, mounted on the rear of a truck. The truck was parked on a slight slope with the outlet for the servicing hose at the lower end. After the helicopter was serviced with 14 gallons of fuel, the pilot sprayed a 4 acre field and began spraying a 47 acre field. While in a swath run at 4 to 6 ft AGL, the engine lost power. The pilot dumped his load and landed straight ahead. The helicopter turned about 180 degrees while sliding to a stop. During this time, the skids buckled and the main rotor, tail boom, and canopy bubble were damaged. After the accident, water was found in the carburetor.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4251A
- Reported as
- Bell 47D1
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 110
- Airframe hours
- 4,402
- Engine
- Franklin O-335-5D, 225 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Operator
- Tery Jon Aviation
- Registered owner
- John Holmberg
- Departed
- Le Sueur, MN
- Destination
- Le Sueur, MN
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
- 31
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Flight hours
- 349 total · 285 in this make and model · 246 as pilot in command · 46 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 110° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
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 N4251A · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.