Bell 47-G3B N47AH

Summary

On 19 October 1997 at about 03:30 local time, a Bell 47-G3B registered N47AH was involved in an accident near Winston, Montana, United States. 2 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.

Date

19 October 1997 at 03:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Winston, Montana, United States

Coordinates

46.5290, -111.7699

Aircraft

Bell 47-G3B

Registration

N47AH

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Townsend → Helena

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

SEA98LA006

Nobody was injured.

Fuel starvation due to fuel flow restriction from a failed carburetor automatic mixture control device. Factors include night light conditions for the forced landing.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

Post accident inspection revealed a loose bellows housing on the MA-6AA carburetor's automatic mixture control. The bellows housing was found loose on the threaded tube, which was still locked to the seat, allowing the bellows to screw down onto the tube, thereby restricting the fuel delivery orifice. The seat and lock nut remained securely bolted to the float. The last recorded carburetor repair was on 7/22/93, with 817 hours since that repair. Records did not reflect the nature of that repair. According to the carburetor manufacturer's engineering drawings, the bellows is bonded to the threaded tube with a permanent type plastic resin.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.