- Date
- September 9, 1997, 15:35 local (22:35 UTC)
- Place
- Minden, NV
- Injuries
- 2 minor, 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N90115Bell 206B
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report January 7, 1998
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19970909039609A
- Case key
- 29900
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
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Probable cause
A hard landing due to the failure of the pilot to adequately compensate for the wind direction and velocity on initiating his approach to the landing area, resulting in a loss of tail rotor authority.
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 helicopter landed hard and a main rotor blade separated and struck a parked airplane. At the time of the accident the winds were 190 to 250 degrees at 15 knots, gusting to 23 knots. As the pilot continued his approach to the landing pad in a northeasterly direction, the helicopter yawed to the right and the pilot applied full left pedal and pulled collective. The pilot stated that the engine was running fine, and he had experienced 'no unusual noise,' and that he had 'run out of tail rotor.' Review of a relative wind chart shows the helicopter's heading during the approach to the pad placed it in an area of the chart where unanticipated right yaw might occur.
Factual narrative
On September 9, 1997, at 1535 hours Pacific daylight time, a Bell 206B, N90115, experienced a hard landing and substantial damage on a parking area pad at the Minden, Nevada, airport. Upon ground impact, a main rotor blade separated and struck a parked and unoccupied Cessna 182, causing substantial damage. There were minor injuries to the pilot and one of the passengers. The other two passengers were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions existed at the time and no flight plan was on file. The personal flight was terminating at the time.
FAA inspectors from the Reno Flight Standards District Office responded to the airport, interviewed the pilot, and inspected the aircraft. At the time of the accident, the winds were 190 to 250 degrees at 15 knots, gusting to 23 knots. As the pilot continued his approach to the landing pad in a northeasterly direction, the helicopter yawed to the right and the pilot applied full left pedal and pulled collective. The pilot later told the inspectors that the engine was running fine, and he had experienced "no unusual noise," and that he had "run out of tail rotor."
A review of a relative wind chart provided by Bell Helicopter Textron shows that the helicopter's heading during the approach to the pad placed it in an area of the chart where unanticipated right yaw might occur. The chart is appended to this report.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N90115
- Reported as
- Bell 206B
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 1601
- Airframe hours
- 11,646
- Engine
- Allison 250, 420 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Palo Alto Helicopters, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · August 28, 1997 · 9 hours before
- Departed
- TRK · Truckee, CA
- Destination
- MEV · NV
- Airport
- MEV · Douglas County
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 56
- Certificates
- Private, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 1,159 total · 259 in this make and model · 1,027 as pilot in command · 55 in the last 90 days · 20 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 250° at 15 knots, gusting 23
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 72 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.