- Date
- August 17, 1983, 19:00 local (Aug 18, 1983, 01:00 UTC)
- Place
- Paxton, NE
- Injuries
- 1 serious, 1 minor; on the ground: 1 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Standing
- Aircraft
- N73248Bell 47G-3B
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19830817041919A
- Case key
- 33348
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
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 plt stated that after landing on a truck platform, he did not decrease rotor RPM & did not lower collective to flat pitch as he was attempting to recover a piece of paper that had fallen to the floor on the right side of the cockpit. As he released the cyclic control with his right hand, the acft slipped to the right across the platform's steel surface. The plt added left cyclic & applied collective pitch to lift the acft. The right skid caught on the platform fence & the acft rolled to the right off the platform. Upon impacting the ground, the acft burst into flames. The plt's son assisted him in escaping from the burning wreckage.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N73248
- Reported as
- Bell 47G-3B
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 2780
- Engine
- Lycoming TVO-435-A1B, 260 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Registered owner
- Lewis E. Detering
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Restricted (Special)
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
- 51
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Expired
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 11,650 total · 400 in this make and model · 11,450 as pilot in command · 81 in the last 90 days · 81 in the last 30 days · 8 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 110° at 9 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 81 °F, dew point 64 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- LBF, 30 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.
Other investigations on N73248 · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.