Enstrom 280FX N285SH

Summary

On 6 August 2008 at about 13:30 local time, a Enstrom 280FX registered N285SH, operated by Elite Helicopter Services Inc, was involved in an accident near Aurora, Colorado, 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

6 August 2008 at 13:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Aurora, Colorado, United States

Coordinates

39.7028, -104.7528

Aircraft

Enstrom 280FX

Registration

N285SH

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Elite Helicopter Services Inc

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Aerial Observation

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Englewood → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

DEN08CA134

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's improper planning and decision making resulting in the loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's premature application of collective resulting in a hard landing and substantial damage.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was returning to land when he noted that the fuel level was low. Shortly thereafter, the engine lost power and the pilot attempted an autorotation to an open field, resulting in a hard landing, and substantial damage to the helicopter. The loss of engine power was due to fuel exhaustion. An examination of the remaining systems revealed no anomalies. According to the pilot, he departed with 19 gallons of fuel, and had calculated this represented 1 hour and 20 minutes of fuel.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.