Aerospatiale AS-355-F N84MH
26 March 1989 · Bear Valley, California, United States · No injuries
Summary
On 26 March 1989 at about 20:33 local time, a Aerospatiale AS-355-F registered N84MH, operated by Care, Inc, was involved in an accident near Bear Valley, California, United States. 3 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.
The record
- Date
- at 20:33
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Bear Valley, California, United States
- Nearest airport
- Bear Valley Stolport (0Q0)
- Coordinates
- 37.9593, -120.8706
- Aircraft
- Aerospatiale AS-355-F
- Registration
- N84MH
- Category
- Helicopter
- Engines
- 2
- Operator
- Care, Inc
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Positioning
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Modesto → Unknown
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- LAX89FA136
People
Nobody was injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
Probable cause
IMPROPER IN-FLIGHT PLANNING/DECISION BY THE PILOT, WHICH RESULTED IN A LOSS OF AIRCRAFT CONTROL DURING A SLOW SPEED, DOWNWIND APPROACH TO A HIGH ALTITUDE STOLPORT. CONTRIBUTING FACTORS WERE: HIGH DENSITY ALTITUDE, TAILWIND, IMPROPER WEATHER EVALUATION BY THE PILOT, SNOW COVERED TERRAIN, WHITEOUT CONDITIONS BEFORE TOUCHDOWN, AND THE SNOWBANK.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
THE EMERG MED SVC (EMS/MEDIVAC) FLT DEPARTED MODESTO HOSPITAL TO TRANSPORT A PATIENT FROM BEAR VALLEY, CA. THE PILOT MADE AN APCH TO THE BEAR VALLEY STOLPORT FROM THE SOUTH-SOUTHWEST. ELEV OF THE STOLPORT WAS 7073'. DRG THE APCH AT SLOW SPEED, THE HELICOPTER BEGAN TO YAW TO THE LEFT. THE PLT APPLIED RGT PEDAL, BUT TO NO AVAIL. HE LOWERED THE NOSE TO BEGIN A GO-AROUND, BUT THE YAW BEGAN TO ACCELERATE. THE PLT THEN SHUT DOWN BOTH ENGS & MADE AN AUTOROTATION. JUST BEFORELANDING, LOOSE SNOW WAS BLOWN UP & WHITEOUT CONDITIONS OCCURRED. DRG TOUCHDOWN, THE HELICOPTER PITCHED FORWARD INTO A SNOWBANK & WAS DAMAGED. THE PLT RPRTD THE WIND WAS LIGHT & VARIABLE. A SHERIFF'S DEPUTY RPRTD THE WIND WAS FROM THE SOUTH/SOUTHWEST AT 5 TO 10 KTS. THE INVESTGATION REVEALED NO EVIDENCE OF A TAIL ROTOR DRIVE MALFUNCTION OR FAILURE.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Aerospatiale AS-355 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 Apr 1989 | Aerospatiale AS-355-F2 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | Circus Circus, Inc. | No injuries | - |
| 20 Jan 1988 | Aerospatiale AS-355-F1 | Grand Prairie, Texas, United States | ERA Helicopters | Minor injuries | - |
| 13 May 1988 | Aerospatiale AS-355-F | Reidsville, North Carolina, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 4 Jul 1987 | Aerospatiale AS-355-F1 | Venice, Louisiana, United States | Petroleum Helicopters, Inc. | Fatal | 1 |
| 15 Jun 1992 | Aerospatiale AS-355-F | Fort Bragg, North Carolina, United States | Omniflight Helicopters | No injuries | - |
| 30 May 1984 | Aerospatiale AS 355 F ECUREUIL | Venice, Louisiana, United States | - | No injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 Sep 1989 | Piper PA-31-350 | Ontario, California, United States | Ameriflight | Fatal | 1 |
| 26 Sep 1989 | Piper PA-25-235 | Warner Springs, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 19 Sep 1989 | Cessna 310K | Ojai, California, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 30 Sep 1989 | Cessna 182 | Eureka, California, United States | Nothern Air | No injuries | - |
| 30 Sep 1989 | Cessna 152 | Lancaster, California, United States | West Coast Air Center | Fatal | 2 |
| 29 Sep 1989 | Bellanca 17-30A | Palo Alto, California, United States | Klouda, Linda K. | Minor injuries | - |