- Date
- October 16, 1996, 16:00 local (22:00 UTC)
- Place
- Casper, WY
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N2762GBell 206B-3
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report August 21, 1997
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19961016032989A
- Case key
- 42530
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
loss of power for undetermined reason(s). A factor relating to the accident was: the pilot was operating outside height/velocity curve parameters, when the loss of power occurred.
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 that the helicopter's engine flamed out, and he made an autorotation to a county road. During a slide-on landing, the right skid gear broke, and the helicopter rolled over on its right side. The pilot noted that he did not recall an audio warning, and the rpm had bled down before landing. He stated that he had made two earlier precautionary landings during the flight, due to the flight being conducted in visible precipitation. In both instances, he stated that he found no evidence of ice or snow buildup in the intake system. The engine was later removed and tested in a test cell, where it functioned normally. Sufficient fuel was found on board the helicopter. FAA inspectors noted that the loss of power occurred at an airspeed and altitude that may have precluded a successful forced landing.
Factual narrative
On October 16, 1996, approximately 1600 mountain daylight time, a Bell 206-BIII helicopter, N2762G, sustained substantial damage during a forced landing near Casper, Wyoming. The airline transport pilot, who was the sole occupant, was uninjured. The aircraft was operated by Bighorn Airways, and was on a positioning flight, operated under 14 CFR 91. The aircraft was on a flight from Rock Springs, Wyoming, to Sheridan, Wyoming. A company flight plan was filed for the flight. There was no fire, and no report of the ELT actuating.
The pilot stated that the engine flamed out. He made an autorotation to a county road. The right skid gear broke during a slide-on landing, and the aircraft rolled over on its right side. The pilot noted that he did not recall an audio warning, and the rpm had bled down before landing. He stated that he had made two earlier precautionary landings during the flight, due to the flight being conducted in visible precipitation. In both instances, he stated that he found no evidence of ice or snow buildup in the intake system. The engine was later removed and tested in a test cell, where it functioned normally. Sufficient fuel was found on board the aircraft.
FAA inspectors noted that the pilot had been operating at an airspeed and altitude that may have precluded a successful forced landing.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N2762G
- Reported as
- Bell 206B-3
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 2707
- Airframe hours
- 4,350
- Engine
- Allison 250-C20B, 420 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Positioning · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Bighorn Airways
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · October 1, 1996 · 70 hours before
- Departed
- RKS · Rock Springs, WY
- Destination
- SHR · Sheridan, WY
- Flight plan
- Company VFR
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
- 58
- Certificates
- Airline transport, Flight engineer, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 23,000 total · 400 in this make and model · 22,900 as pilot in command · 30 in the last 90 days · 25 in the last 30 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 40° at 4 knots
- Visibility
- 2 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 1,300 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 34 °F, dew point 34 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- CPR
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.