Bell 206BIII N90214

Summary

On 19 September 2000 at about 19:35 local time, a Bell 206BIII registered N90214 was involved in an accident near Ojai, California, United States. 3 people were on board and 2 were seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

19 September 2000 at 19:35

Classification

Accident

Location

Ojai, California, United States

Coordinates

34.5095, -119.2898

Aircraft

Bell 206BIII

Registration

N90214

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 135: Air Taxi & Commuter

Purpose of flight

Unknown

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Oxnard → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX00LA343

2 people were seriously injured.

the pilot encountered a loss of tail rotor effectiveness which led to an uncontrolled rotation and subsequent hard landing. Factors were unfavorable wind conditions, density altitude, and uneven terrain.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was flying personnel to several flood control monitoring stations. After landing to the west on a ridgeline at an elevation about 5,000 feet, the pilot decided to reposition closer to the station. He hover taxied to his landing area. As the skids touched down, the pilot felt the helicopter slide to the right. He picked back up into a hover and decided to fly back to the original landing site. After applying takeoff power, he pushed the nose of the helicopter over and began to fly away downslope. The nose of the helicopter began to rotate to the right, even with full left pedal applied. The pilot reduced collective and continued downslope. As the nose continued to the right, he increased collective, and began to follow the right yaw with cyclic. He flew the helicopter to a downwind position approximately abeam his landing site. Then the nose tucked down and the tail swung to the left. He reduced collective and throttle as the helicopter crash-landed into the slope below his landing site. The air temperature was 85 degrees Fahrenheit, the density altitude was about 8,000 feet, and the winds were from 240 degrees at 5 knots.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.