- Date
- July 14, 2008, 22:30 local (Jul 15, 2008, 05:30 UTC)
- Place
- Shafter, CA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N1390XBell 47G-3B-1
- Defining event
- Maneuvering-low-alt flying: Collision with terr/obj (non-CFIT)
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report August 28, 2008
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- FAA report
- 20080714840859A
- Case key
- 68462
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 maintain adequate altitude while maneuvering. Contributing factors were the failure of the helicopter's lights during the night flight and the effect of that failure on the pilot's visual perception.
Findings · 4
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 a few minutes after taking off for a nighttime agricultural spray flight over an alfalfa field, the ground illumination lights in his helicopter went out. At the time, he was descending and maneuvering close to the ground on a spray run. The pilot reported that he did not see the field before impacting it with the spray boom. The helicopter rolled over and was substantially damaged.
Factual narrative
The pilot reported that a few minutes after taking off for a nighttime agricultural spray flight over an alfalfa field, the ground illumination lights in his helicopter went out. At the time, he was descending and maneuvering close to the ground. The pilot reported that he did not see the field before impacting it with the spray boom. The helicopter rolled over and was substantially damaged.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N1390X
- Reported as
- Bell 47G-3B-1
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 6586
- Engine
- Lycoming TVO-435, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Operator
- Slykerman Ag Aviation, Inc.
- Registered owner
- John A. Slykerman
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Restricted (Special)
- Departed
- NONE · Shafter, CA
- Destination
- NONE · Shafter, CA
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
- 43
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2
- Flight hours
- 10,500 total · 7,000 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
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 N1390X · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.