- Date
- December 5, 1999, 07:45 local (13:45 UTC)
- Place
- Ship Shoal 225
- Injuries
- 1 serious
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N600CKBell 206L-1
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 9, 2001
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19991205043449A
- Case key
- 47869
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 loss of power for undetermined reasons. A factor was the rough water condition.
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 helicopter was about halfway to its intended destination in the Gulf Of Mexico, approximately 150 feet above the water, when the engine lost power. The pilot initiated an autorotation to the water and deployed the floats. The helicopter landed 'hard,' but remained upright and afloat. The pilot got the emergency raft from the cabin and inflated it. After getting into the raft, the waves, which were estimated at 6-8 feet, overturned the helicopter, and it sank in 160 feet of water. The helicopter was not recovered, therefore, the reason for the loss of power could not be determined.
Factual narrative
On December 5, 1999, at 0745 central standard time, a Bell 206L-1 helicopter, N600CK, registered to Evergreen Equity, Inc., of McMinnville, Oregon, and operated by Evergreen Helicopters International of Galveston, Texas, sank after landing on the water, following a loss of engine power near Ship Shoal 225, which is located in the Gulf of Mexico. The airline transport pilot, sole occupant of the helicopter, sustained serious injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a company flight plan was filed for the 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 135 nonscheduled flight. The flight originated from platform 89 located in the Ship Shoal 225 area, at 0740, and was destined for a platform in the Ship Shoal 222 area.
The operator reported that when the helicopter was about halfway to its intended destination, approximately 150 feet above the water, the engine lost power. The pilot initiated an autorotation to the water and deployed the floats. The helicopter landed "hard," but remained upright and afloat. The pilot got the emergency raft from the cabin and inflated it. After getting into the raft, the waves, which were estimated at 6-8 feet, overturned the helicopter, and it sank in 160 feet of water.
The helicopter was not recovered, therefore, the reason for the loss of power could not be determined. Several weeks after the accident, a fisherman recovered in his net, the portion of the tail boom aft of the horizontal stabilizer.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N600CK
- Reported as
- Bell 206L-1
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 45787
- Airframe hours
- 8,960
- Engine
- Allison 250-C30P, 786 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Part 135
- Operator
- Evergreen Helicopters, Intl.
- Registered owner
- Evergreen Equity, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · October 13, 1999 · 70 hours before
- Departed
- 89
- Destination
- Ship Shoal 222, GM
- 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
- 67
- Certificates
- Commercial, Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane, Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 21,949 total · 1,900 in this make and model · 141 in the last 90 days · 46 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 45° at 12 knots
- Visibility
- 5 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 2,000 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 45 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.