- Date
- February 1, 1984, 11:50 local (18:50 UTC)
- Place
- Chester, MT
- Injuries
- 1 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N776FSEnstrom F-28C
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19840201001909A
- Case key
- 16196
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
According to a company employee, the plt made a radio call from a remote mountain site where the plt was doing some workon a transmitter tower & stated that he was taking off, & if the employee did not hear from him in an hour to come look for him. The helicopter crashed into the side of the mountain about 1 mi from the tower. A witness near the accident site stated that winds were gusting to 50 mph with heavy snow. The plt had been receiving helicopter instruction & was endorsed for supervised solo only. However, the plt's instructor reported that the plt had told him that he had been flying the helicopter '...all over the place. On top of mountains, calling on customers and basically doing just what he well wished with it...' The instructor stated they had yet to cover pinnacle approaches, ridge line work, updrafts, downdrafts, turbulence, confined areas, slope landings, etc.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N776FS
- Reported as
- Enstrom F-28C
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 360
- Engine
- Lycoming THIO-360-E1AD, 205 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Munson Radio, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · November 11, 1983 · 45 hours before
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 37
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Right
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 4,132 total · 81 in this make and model · 3,505 as pilot in command · 81 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.