Aerospatiale SA-319B N3194K

Summary

On 14 December 2005 at about 21:57 local time, a Aerospatiale SA-319B registered N3194K, operated by Bureau of Land Management, was involved in an accident near Escalante, Utah, United States. 6 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

14 December 2005 at 21:57

Classification

Accident

Location

Escalante, Utah, United States

Coordinates

37.3653, -111.2686

Aircraft

Aerospatiale SA-319B

Registration

N3194K

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Bureau of Land Management

Operating rule

Public Use

Purpose of flight

Public Use

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Page → Escalante

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

SEA06TA028

2 people were seriously injured.

The pilot's inadequate remedial action when ground resonance was encountered during landing. Contributing factors were the rough/uneven terrain and company inadequate maintenance.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The helicopter was manufactured in France for the French Army Air Force. Thirty years later, it was imported to California and given a Certificate of Airworthiness in the normal category by the Anchorage, Alaska, FAA FSDO. The helicopter was flying under contract for the Bureau of Land Management (Public Use) in southern Utah in support of an eradication of feral cattle program. The pilot said that he touched down on a sloping rock outcrop when the helicopter began to oscillate. The pilot pulled up on the collective and the aircraft "suddenly self-destructed." Five of the occupants exited the helicopter under their own power, however, one had been struck by a rotor blade and remained buckled in his seat unconscious. The ground resonance event separated the transmission/rotor system, the engine from the fuselage, and one main rotor blade impacted the cabin. The pilot said that he had experienced at least two incipient ground resonance events with this helicopter during the previous 18 months. During a post-accident examination, numerous maintenance discrepancies were identified, including: improper tire inflations, improper main landing gear hydraulic shock strut pressures, and differential functioning of the main rotor blade drag dampers. The manufacturer's representative said that all of these items have narrow operational tolerances if ground resonance events are to be avoided. Additionally, the landing surface was a "bowl shaped" rock formation with the right main landing wheel up sloped approximately 5 degrees and the nose wheel 3-5 inches nose low.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.