- Date
- November 13, 1982, 09:55 local (14:55 UTC)
- Place
- West Mifflin, PA
- Injuries
- 3 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N72590Aerospatiale SA316B
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 13, 1983
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19821113058559A
- Case key
- 73006
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
Pilot turned aircraft into the wind to perform power check. Approximately 3-5 ft above the ground the pilot reportedly began receiving feedback through the cyclic. Moderate then severe vibration of the airframe was reported. Aircraft yawed 90 degrees left and the pilot lowered the aircraft to the ground. There was substantial damage to the main rotor blades, tailboom, vertical fins, tail rotor driveshaft and tail rotor.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N72590
- Reported as
- Aerospatiale SA316B
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 1509
- Airframe hours
- 5,132
- Engine
- Turbomeca ARTTOUSTE III, 858 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Part 135
- Operator
- Life Flight, Allegheny General
- Registered owner
- Rocky Mountain Helicopter
- Departed
- Pittsburgh, PA
- Destination
- Pittsburgh, PA
- Airport
- AGC · Allegheny County, runway 28, 6,500 × 150 ft, concrete
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
- 33
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Flight hours
- 6,381 total · 970 in this make and model · 6,332 as pilot in command · 70 in the last 90 days · 25 in the last 30 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 290° at 15 knots
- Visibility
- 6 statute miles
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 N72590 · 2
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.