- Date
- October 24, 1985, 10:00 local (15:00 UTC)
- Place
- East Cameron
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 7 serious
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N3194MBell 222UT
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 7, 1989
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19851024057709A
- Case key
- 22164
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
Three pax rprtd that just prior to reaching the helipad, the helicopter's forward movement stopped and the helicopter wobbled or yawed from side to side. The pax's rprted that the pilot appeared to be trying to gain altitude and go forward when they heard a loud noise. The helicopter then dropped in a tail low attitude and crashed into pressurized natural gas components. Escaping gas ignited which resulted in an intense fire. An exam revealed that two blades on the l eng's gas producer turbine wheel had failed from fatigue and lodged against the pwr turbine nozzle vanes. An investigation showed that there should have been sufficient pwr to sustain flt with this failure. There was evidence theengine had lost power at a critical point during the apch and the pilot attempted to manuever the helicopter onto the helipad. However, the toe of the right skid contacted the tubular frame of a hothe rgt skid contacted the tubular frame of a horizontal safety fence (around the helipad). Subsequently, the fence was bent inward and downward by the aircraft.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3194M
- Reported as
- Bell 222UT
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 47538
- Airframe hours
- 123
- Engine
- Lycoming LTS-101-750, 653 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Part 135
- Registered owner
- Pumpkin Air
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- AAIP · October 22, 1985 · 4 hours before
- Departed
- 2LA1 · Intracoastl Cty, LA
- Flight plan
- Company VFR
- Airport
- Block 215 Helipad
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
- 33
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter
- Medical
- Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Right
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 6,867 total · 317 in this make and model · 6,154 as pilot in command · 69 in the last 90 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 135° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 70 °F
- Observed at
- LCH
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.