- Date
- October 6, 2021, 21:16 local (Oct 7, 2021, 01:16 UTC)
- Place
- Batavia, NY
- Injuries
- 4 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N505TJBell Helicopter Textron Canada 429
- Defining event
- Approach: Controlled flight into terr/obj (CFIT)
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Eastern Region Aviation
- Parties
- FAA/FSDO
- FAA report
- 20211006017429A
- Case key
- 104073
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’s failure to disengage the autopilot prior to climbing out of a fog bank.
Findings · 5
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The pilot reported that he decided to perform a practice approach to the runway using night vision goggles. He set up the approach and activated the autopilot. About 200 ft above the ground, the helicopter inadvertently entered a fog bank and the pilot lost visual reference to the runway. He attempted to perform a climbing right turn but forgot to deactivate the autopilot. The autopilot initiated a descent into the fog, the pilot maintained a level attitude, and shortly thereafter the helicopter impacted the ground and bounced. The pilot attempted to initiate a climb; however, the helicopter impacted the ground a second time, which resulted in substantial damage to the fuselage. The pilot reported no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N505TJ
- Reported as
- Bell Helicopter Textron Canada 429
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 57029
- Built
- 2010
- Airframe hours
- 2,860
- Engines
- Pratt & Whitney PW207D1, 550 horsepower, turbo shaftPratt & Whitney PW207D1, 550 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Positioning · Part 135
- Operator
- Mercy Flight Inc
- Registered owner
- Mercy Flight Inc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Continuous airworthiness · September 28, 2021
- Departed
- ROC · Rochester, NY
- Destination
- Same as departure
- Flight plan
- Company VFR
- Airport
- GVQ · Genesee County, runway 10/28, 5,499 × 100 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- Onboard weather, Electronic primary flight display, Electronic multifunction display, Data recorder, Satellite tracking device, Auto-pilot, ADS-B
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
- 54
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Flight engineer, Private, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 2, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- April 23, 2021
- Seat
- Right
- Restraint
- 4-point
- Flight hours
- 3,583 total · 621 in this make and model · 3,583 as pilot in command · 25 in the last 90 days · 9 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night
- Wind
- Calm
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 50 °F, dew point 48 °F
- Observed at
- GVQ
Docket · 3
The files NTSB released with the investigation on January 4, 2022, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 5.0 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.