- Date
- September 23, 1994, 08:35 local (12:35 UTC)
- Place
- Moore Haven, FL
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N30JJBell 47G-2A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 18, 1994
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19940923030579A
- Case key
- 37606
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-in-command's failure to maintain a visual lookout while maneuvering on a swath run, resulting in an in-flight collision with wires, and subsequent in-flight collision with terrain.
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 stated he was making a swath run to the north over an orange grove. He was aware that powerlines paralled the swath run to the north, and additional powerlines crossed the end of the swath run from east to west. Upon reaching the end of the swath run, the helicopter collided with the wires separating the tailrotor from the helicopter. The helicopter spun to the right, collided with the terrain, and was destroyed by a postcrash fire.
Factual narrative
On September 23, 1994, about 0835 eastern daylight time, a Bell 47G-2A, N30JJ, registered to Airwork Enterprises, operating as a 14 CFR Part 137 aerial application flight, collided with wires and crashed while making a swath run in the vicinity of Moore Haven, Florida. The helicopter was destroyed. The commercial pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The flight originated from an orange grove located about 7 miles south of Moore Haven, Florida, about 5 minutes before the accident.
The pilot stated he was making a swath run to the north over an orange grove. Power lines were located to his right paralleling the swath run. Another set of power lines intersect the north/south power lines from the east/west, at the end of the orange grove. Upon reaching the end of the swath run, he observed and collided with the east/west power lines separating the tailrotor from the helicopter. The helicopter spun to the right, collided with the terrain, and was destroyed by a postcrash fire.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N30JJ
- Reported as
- Bell 47G-2A
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 2670
- Airframe hours
- 6,487
- Engine
- Lycoming VO-435-A1F, 265 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Registered owner
- Airwork Enterprises
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Restricted (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · August 15, 1994 · 8 hours before
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
- 56
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 10,342 total · 3,737 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 90° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 77 °F, dew point 73 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- FMY, 22 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.