- Date
- December 29, 1989, 11:30 local (19:30 UTC)
- Place
- Santa Rosa, CA
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 1 serious, 3 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N1604LMcDonnell Douglas 369E
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report August 26, 1994
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19891229054279A
- Case key
- 26603
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 improper preflight planning/decision which resulted in the loss of tail rotor effectiveness. Contributing to the accident was the pilot allowing the maximum gross weight of the aircraft to be exceeded, and the tailwind.
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 pilot executed an immediate left downwind climbing turn when he departed the helipad and experienced a loss of tail rotor effectiveness. Before departing, the pilot failed to account for the downwind turn and the helicopter's exceeding the maximum gross weight. The post accident investigation disclosed the lateral trim motor exceeded its physical extension limits which indicates that the trim motor was operating during the impact sequence when its airframe attachment point was broken.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N1604L
- Reported as
- McDonnell Douglas 369E
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 0266E
- Airframe hours
- 367
- Engine
- Allison 250-C20, 375 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Operator
- Interwest, Inc.
- Registered owner
- John M. & Ona R. Roth
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · November 21, 1989
- Departed
- STS
- Airport
- STS · Sonoma County
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
- 34
- Certificates
- Airline transport, Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine sea, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 4,123 total · 57 in this make and model · 3,705 as pilot in command · 106 in the last 90 days · 27 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 310° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 30 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 59 °F, dew point 37 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.