- Date
- January 12, 1993, 20:23 local (Jan 13, 1993, 04:23 UTC)
- Place
- Hayward, CA
- Injuries
- 2 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N3202ABell 206B
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report November 15, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19930112000309A
- Case key
- 27818
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 continued flight into known adverse weather conditions and continued VFR flight into instrument meteorological conditions. Contributing to the accident were dark night light conditions and rain.
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
During a night CFR part 135 cargo flight, the certificated commercial helicopter pilot and a crew member received company instructions to divert from the intended route of flight to another destination. The weather conditions in the area included areas of low ceilings and reduced visibility due to rain. The pilot attempted to cross a coastal bay in a westerly direction in an area of limited visual cues and decided to reverse his course. The pilot continued south and again attempted to cross the bay near a bridge that spanned the bay. A witness observed the helicopter descending below the level of the bridge where visibility was about 1/4 mile in rain. The helicopter struck the water about 1/2 mile from the shore and about 400 yards south of the bridge and was destroyed. The pilot had obtained a weather briefing that included areas of marginal VFR due to rain and fog, thunderstorms, and several airmets and sigmets.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3202A
- Reported as
- Bell 206B
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 962
- Airframe hours
- 10,490
- Engine
- Allison 250C-20B, 420 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Part 135
- Operator
- Helinet Corp., doing business as Helinet Aviation Services
- Registered owner
- F.D.S. Helicopters Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · November 5, 1992 · 57 hours before
- Departed
- 056 · Novato, CA
- Destination
- SFO · San Francisco, 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
- 39
- Certificates
- Private, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Right
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 3,925 total · 1,500 in this make and model · 3,900 as pilot in command · 142 in the last 90 days · 61 in the last 30 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 50° at 7 knots
- Visibility
- 4 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 1,500 ft broken
- Temperature
- 45 °F, dew point 45 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- HWD, 4 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.