Bell UH1B N3880A

Summary

On 31 May 1996 at about 14:30 local time, a Bell UH1B registered N3880A was involved in an accident near West Palm Beach, Florida, United States. One person was 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.

Date

31 May 1996 at 14:30

Classification

Accident

Location

West Palm Beach, Florida, United States

Coordinates

26.7209, -80.0710

Aircraft

Bell UH1B

Registration

N3880A

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 137: Agricultural

Purpose of flight

Aerial Application

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

MIA96LA144

Nobody was injured.

the failure of the tail rotor drive shaft which resulted in a loss of tail rotor control.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

While refueling the helicopter the pilot and his crew saw smoke coming from the 'hell hole' on the bottom of the helicopter. They could not determine where the smoke was coming from, so the pilot elected to reposition the helicopter away from the fuel pad. After lift-off, there was a 'loud pop' and the helicopter immediately started rotating to the right. In an effort to avoid striking the fuel tank the pilot added power, and the wind carried the helicopter across the top of the tank. The spinning rotation increased, and after crossing the fuel tank the pilot reduced power. As the helicopter started to come around and get closer to the ground, it went backwards and struck a tree. After impact with the ground the helicopter rolled on its left side. Examination of the helicopter revealed that the tail rotor cable retaining pin came loose, and had rubbed against the tail rotor shaft, subsequently causing the drive shaft to fail.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.