- Date
- July 19, 2022, 12:00 local (16:00 UTC)
- Place
- Franklin, PA
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N203PABell 206L-3
- Defining event
- Enroute-cruise: Controlled flight into terr/obj (CFIT)
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- 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
- 20220719007699A
- Case key
- 105635
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 inadequate visual lookout while flying at a low level over a river, which resulted in a wire strike.
Findings · 2
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 was flying the helicopter following a river shoreline about 400 ft above ground level. He was scanning the horizon when he saw a “flash” and felt the helicopter shudder. He assessed the controllability of the helicopter and noted no anomalies, therefore, he continued the flight to a nearby airport. After landing, during the post flight examination of the helicopter, he found substantial damage to the vertical stabilizer of the helicopter. Furthermore, there were wire strike marks on the main rotor blade consistent with a wire strike. The operator reported no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N203PA
- Reported as
- Bell 206L-3
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 51462
- Built
- 1991
- Airframe hours
- 17,884.4
- Engine
- Rolls Royce Allison M250 C-30, 650 hp, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Ferry · Part 91
- Operator
- D H Helicopter Inc DBA
- Registered owner
- D H Helicopter Inc DBA
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · July 1, 2022
- Departed
- FKL · Franklin, PA
- Destination
- IDI · Indiana, PA
- Equipment
- ADS-B, Satellite tracking device
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
- 36
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 2, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- March 24, 2022
- Seat
- Right
- Restraint
- 4-point
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 250° at 11 knots, gusting 17
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 81 °F, dew point 66 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.95 inHg
- Observed at
- FKL, 1 nm away
- METAR
- KFKL 191556Z AUTO 25011G17KT 10SM SCT034 27/19 A2995 RMK AO2 SLP133 T02720189
Docket · 4
The files NTSB released with the investigation on December 5, 2022, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 76.7 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.