- Date
- December 7, 2000, 10:15 local (18:15 UTC)
- Place
- Henderson, NV
- Injuries
- 3 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N355NTAerospatiale AS-350-BA
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report December 6, 2002
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA FLT STANDARDS DIST OFC
- FAA report
- 20001207021529A
- Case key
- 50815
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 misjudged his practice approach into a remote pinnacle landing site, dragging a skid across a rock resulting in a hard landing.
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 purpose of the flight was an FAA monitored 14 CFR Part 135 check ride of a company pilot by the company check airman. According to the FAA inspector, who was onboard and monitor the check ride, while performing a pinnacle approach procedure into an unimproved site, the right front portion of the helicopter's skid collided with a large rock. This occurred with some forward speed. The resultant hard landing caused substantial buckling of the tailboom assembly, which was discovered after returning to the base of operation.
Factual narrative
On December 7, 2000, about 1015 Pacific standard time, an Aerospatiale AS-350-BA helicopter, N355NT, was substantially damaged during a collision with a rock and a hard landing from a pinnacle approach near Henderson, Nevada. Neither the commercial pilot, airline transport rated company check pilot, nor the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector was injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the instructional flight operating under 14 CFR Part 91, and a company flight plan was filed. The flight originated at Las Vegas, Nevada, about 1005. The purpose of the flight was an FAA monitored 14 CFR Part 135 check ride of a company pilot by the company check airman.
According to the FAA inspector who was onboard and monitoring the check ride, while performing a pinnacle approach procedure into an unimproved site, the right front portion of the helicopter's skid collided with a large rock. This occurred with some forward speed. The resultant hard landing caused substantial buckling of the tailboom assembly.
The operator did not file a Pilot/Operator Accident Report, NTSB form 6120.1/2.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N355NT
- Reported as
- Aerospatiale AS-350-BA
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 2053
- Airframe hours
- 6,045
- Engine
- Turbomeca ARRIEL 1B, 590 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Jan Leasing LLC
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- LAS · Las Vegas, NV
- Destination
- OL7 · Jean, NV
- 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
- 53
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Private, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 5,500 total · 4,014 in this make and model · 140 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 70 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N355NT · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.