Bell 206L-1/C-30P N2654

Summary

On 13 September 1996 at about 12:10 local time, a Bell 206L-1/C-30P registered N2654 was involved in an accident near Morgan City, Louisiana, United States. 6 people were on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

13 September 1996 at 12:10

Classification

Accident

Location

Morgan City, Louisiana, United States

Coordinates

29.7304, -91.1301

Aircraft

Bell 206L-1/C-30P

Registration

N2654

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 135: Air Taxi & Commuter

Purpose of flight

Unknown

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Unknown → So. Marsh 243

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

FTW96LA386

1 person had minor injuries.

The loss of tail rotor control as result of a tail rotor blade strike by an undetermined object. A factor was the lack of suitable terrain for the forced landing.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The helicopter was in route to South Marsh 243C in the Gulf Of Mexico from Morgan City, Louisiana. Approximately 5 minutes into the flight, at an altitude of 500 feet AGL, 'a loud continuous, chattering and violent vibration started without warning.' During the emergency landing to a canal, about 50 feet above the trees, the vibration totally ceased; however, the helicopter began turning to the right. At this time the pilot initiated an autorotation and deployed the floats. The helicopter touched down on the water in a level attitude at 20 to 25 MPH, and the helicopter came to rest on its side. One tail rotor blade was sheared from the leading edge to the trailing edge at the outboard end. Scanning of the sheared area by energy dispersive x-ray analysis (EDXA) revealed elements of lead and chromium in one area, and titanium, iron, nickel and chromium in another area. Examination of the area which contained the elements of lead and chromium with an optical microscope at 60X magnification, revealed particles of red paint within this area. The object that struck the tail rotor blade could not be determined.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.