Bell UH-1B N2087S
12 June 2007 · Biggs, California, United States · No injuries
Summary
On 12 June 2007 at about 15:05 local time, a Bell UH-1B registered N2087S was involved in an accident near Biggs, California, 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.
The record
- Date
- at 15:05
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Biggs, California, United States
- Nearest airport
- Off Airport
- Coordinates
- 39.4158, -121.6894
- Aircraft
- Bell UH-1B
- Registration
- N2087S
- Category
- Helicopter
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 137: Agricultural
- Purpose of flight
- Aerial Application
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Biggs → Biggs
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- SEA07LA154
People
Nobody was injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Probable cause
Loss of control during hover for undetermined reasons.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
As the helicopter lifted off from the top of a chemical truck the pilot heard a faint whining sound, which got louder and then abruptly stopped when the helicopter had cleared the truck. After the whining stopped, the helicopter flight controls locked up, but despite the restriction the pilot managed to pull a small amount of aft cyclic to help the helicopter settle to the ground. On touchdown the helicopter drifted to the right, then skidded across the ground before experiencing a dynamic rollover. The pilot reported that the hydraulic pump, which supplies hydraulic power to the flight control system servos, failed. A postaccident examination of the hydraulic pump, which sustained impact damage as result of the accident sequence, failed to reveal why the pump had failed. An FAA inspector reported that the hydraulic pump had been removed from a salvaged helicopter in 2000, and had not been used prior to being installed on the accident aircraft, about a month and a half before the accident. The inspector also reported that the pump's condition was unknown and that it was never tested prior to being installed on the helicopter.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Bell UH-1B accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 Dec 2007 | Bell UH-1B | Ennis, Montana, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 30 Jun 2008 | Bell UH-1B | Iliamna, Alaska, United States | Pollux Avaition LTD | No injuries | - |
| 6 Sep 2009 | Bell UH-1B | Arvilla, North Dakota, United States | Morten Jesse L | Serious injuries | - |
| 12 Jun 2004 | Bell UH-1B | Las Bocas, Mexico | San Joaquin Helicopters | No injuries | - |
| 16 Oct 2003 | Bell UH-1B | Durham, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 16 Jul 2002 | Bell UH-1B | Lorida, Florida, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Jun 2007 | Piper PA-28-180 | Rosamond, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 5 Jul 2007 | Schempp-Hirth VENTUS-2C | Bridgeport, California, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 22 May 2007 | Schweizer SGS2-33A | Los Alamitos, California, United States | Civil Air Patrol - California Wing | No injuries | - |
| 25 May 2007 | Westland WASP HAS MK1 | Ramona, California, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 8 Jul 2007 | Cessna 152 | Tracy, California, United States | California Airways | Minor injuries | - |
| 25 May 2007 | Skygear SKYGEAR | Chino, California, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |