- Date
- November 8, 1990, 14:00 local (22:00 UTC)
- Place
- Trout Lake, WA
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N36012Aerospatiale SA315B Lama
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 23, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19901108049299A
- Case key
- 41360
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 clearance from an obstacle.
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
During an external load operation, the pilot had just released a load of logs when the helicopter drifted to one side and the long line became entangled in trees. The pilot released the long line but was unable to maintain control as the helicopter collided with trees and the terrain. The pilot reported that there were no mechanical failures or malfunctions with the helicopter at the time of the accident.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N36012
- Reported as
- Aerospatiale SA315B Lama (SA315B LAM)
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 2513
- Engine
- Turbomeca ARTOUSTE IIIB, 853 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Other work use · Part 133
- Operator
- Rocky Mountain Helicopters
- Registered owner
- Unknown
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
- 46
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Flight hours
- 12,000 total · 1,500 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 270° at 25 knots
- Visibility
- 1 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 500 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 39 °F, dew point 39 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.