- Date
- July 17, 2001, 15:15 local (21:15 UTC)
- Place
- Cody, WY
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N2128ZAerospatiale SA315B
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report April 1, 2003
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- FAA report
- 20010717017939A
- Case key
- 52742
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 turbine assembly due to an over temperature condition. A contributing factor was the lack of suitable terrain for a forced landing.
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 reported that he was starting his 27th move of geophysical drilling equipment for the day. He was pulling in power to lift (long line) an engine and a compressor when he heard two loud "pops." He lost engine power, but did not release the long line because his ground helper was underneath the load. He moved forward a short distance, and autorotated to a 45 degree hill side. The aircraft landed and immediately rolled on its side with the mast pointing down slope which stopped the rolling. The ground helper said that he saw "fire shooting out of the tailpipe" as the helicopter descended towards the earth. Postaccident examination of the engine revealed that all the turbine blades had experienced an extreme over temperature condition. The density altitude was computed to be 9,205 feet.
Factual narrative
On July 17, 2001, at approximately 1515 mountain daylight time, an Aerospatiale SA315B helicopter, N2128Z, was destroyed when it rolled over following an emergency autorotation near Cody, Wyoming. The commercial pilot, the sole occupant in the aircraft, received minor injuries. Geo-Seis Helicopters, Fort Collins, Colorado, was operating under Title 14 CFR Part 133. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The long line operation originated from a remote landing zone approximately 45 minutes before the accident. No flight plan was filed.
The pilot reported that he was starting his 27th move of geophysical drilling equipment for the day. He was increasing power to lift an engine and compressor when he heard two loud "pops." The engine lost power, but the pilot did not release the long line because his ground helper was underneath the load. He moved forward a short distance, and autorotated to a 45 degree hill side. The aircraft landed and immediately rolled on its side with the mast pointing down slope, which stopped the aircraft from rolling. The ground helper said that he saw "fire shooting out of the tailpipe" as the helicopter descended.
Postaccident examination of the engine revealed that all the turbine blades had experienced an extreme over temperature condition. The density altitude was computed to be 9,205 feet. The pilot had approximately 5,510 hours of flight experience in SA315B Lamas.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N2128Z
- Reported as
- Aerospatiale SA315B
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 06-201
- Airframe hours
- 21,475
- Engine
- Turbomeca Artouste III, 856 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Fire
- In-Flight
- Flight
- Other work use · Part 133
- Operator
- Geo-Seis Helicopters Inc
- Registered owner
- Robert's Aircraft Company
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Unknown · July 17, 2001 · 2.6 hours before
- Departed
- NONE · Cody, WY
- Flight plan
- Company VFR
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
- 52
- Injuries
- Minor
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Last flight review
- May 4, 2001
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 16,550 total · 5,510 in this make and model · 16,490 as pilot in command · 111 in the last 90 days · 88 in the last 30 days · 5 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 70° at 7 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 77 °F, dew point 45 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.93 inHg
- Observed at
- COD, 10 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.