- Date
- August 28, 1995, 13:41 local (20:41 UTC)
- Place
- Carmel Valley, CA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N206MTBell 206BIII
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report February 27, 1996
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19950828048429A
- Case key
- 29199
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 an adequate clearance from obstructions while hovering.
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 reported that he was hovering with a 50-foot-long line over a canyon covered by brush and oak trees. The tail rotor inadvertently contacted a tree. The helicopter began to spin and descended into the trees.
Factual narrative
On August 28, 1995, at 1341 Pacific daylight time, a Bell 206BIII helicopter, N206MT, collided with trees following a tail rotor contact to a tree while hovering in the Los Padres National Forest near Carmel Valley, California. The aircraft was owned and operated by West Wind Helicopters, Inc., of Lincoln, California, and was engaged in long line operations in support of drug eradication efforts by the Monterey County Sheriff's Office. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time and no flight plan was filed. The helicopter sustained substantial damage. The certificated commercial pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. The flight originated from a staging area near the site on the day of the accident about 1330 hours.
In a written statement to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspectors, the pilot reported that he was hovering with a 50-foot-long line over a canyon covered by brush and oak trees. The tail rotor inadvertently contacted a tree. The helicopter began to spin and descended into the trees.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N206MT
- Reported as
- Bell 206BIII
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 2276
- Engine
- Allison 250-C20B, 317 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Other work use · Part 133
- Registered owner
- West Wind Helicopters, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
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
- 47
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 5,900 total · 2,000 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 290° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 50 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 72 °F, dew point 52 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- MRY, 18 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.