Bell 206-L1 N478KA

Summary

On 20 April 1985 at about 19:20 local time, a Bell 206-L1 registered N478KA was involved in an accident near Kailua/Kona, Hawaii, United States. 7 people were on board and 7 had minor injuries. The aircraft was destroyed. No probable cause statement is available for this record.

Date

20 April 1985 at 19:20

Classification

Accident

Location

Kailua/Kona, Hawaii, United States

Coordinates

Not recorded

Aircraft

Bell 206-L1

Registration

N478KA

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Unknown

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Kailua/Kona → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX85FA217

7 people had minor injuries.

The NTSB has not published a probable cause for this record. No probable cause statement is present in the source data.

Nothing about the cause is stated here that is not in the source record.

Read the full NTSB narrative

A REVENUE SIGHT-SEEING HELICOPTER FLIGHT OPERATING UNDER 14 CFR 91 COLLIDED WITH LAVA ROCK WHILE ATTEMPTING A FORCED LANDING ON THE SUMMIT OF MUANA LOA VOLCANO AFTER A PARTIAL LOSS OF POWER. THE PILOT STATED THAT WHILE IN A SHALLOW DOWNWIND TURN AT APRX 200 FT AGL & AN AIRSPEED OF ABOUT 40 MPH, THE HELICOPTER BEGAN TO SETTLE WHILE HE CONTINUED TO ADD POWER. THE AIRCRAFT WAS TOO LOW TO INCREASE AIRSPEED. AFTER HITTING THE LAVA ROCK, THE HELICOPTER SKIDDED 12 FEET, TURNED TO THE RIGHT, & ROLLED OVER TO THE LEFT. BOTH THE FLT CONTROLS & THE ENG FUNCTIONED TO TOUCHDOWN. TESTS DISCLOSED NO DISCREPANCIES IN THE FUEL SYSTEM. THE HEIGHT-VELOCITY DIAGRAM HAS ONLY BEEN TESTED TO A DENSITY ALT OF 10,000 FT. THE ACCIDENT OCCURRED AT A DENSITY ALT OF 15,500 FT. IT DOES NOT APPLY ABOVE A DENSITY ALT OF 5,400 FT AT A GROSS WEIGHT OF 3,600 LBS, THE ESTIMATED WEIGHT OF THE HELICOPTER AT THE ACCIDENT SITE.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.