Bell 47J-2A N8567F

Summary

On 11 October 2008 at about 16:45 local time, a Bell 47J-2A registered N8567F, operated by Loflite LLC, was involved in an accident near Florence, Arizona, United States. 3 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

11 October 2008 at 16:45

Classification

Accident

Location

Florence, Arizona, United States

Coordinates

32.9883, -111.3411

Aircraft

Bell 47J-2A

Registration

N8567F

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Loflite LLC

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Phoenix → Florence

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR09CA008

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s inadequate compensation for a wind shift encountered during the landing approach, which resulted in a hard landing and rollover. Contributing to the accident was the encounter with the wind shift.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that he was preparing to land the helicopter at an off airport landing site and encountered a wind shift or wind shear on base leg that resulted in an uncommanded yaw followed by a rapid descent rate. Before impacting the ground the pilot was able to reduce the descent rate and level the helicopter. The accident site was desert terrain that sloped downward from the right to the left. During the accident sequence the helicopter rolled over. The pilot said that people on the ground told him that just prior to the accident there was a sudden wind storm that passed through the area that forced the people on the ground to take shelter inside an enclosure to escape the wind. The pilot stated that he had no communication with the people at the landing site and no knowledge of the wind storm. The pilot further stated that the helicopter and engine had no mechanical failures or malfunctions during the flight. The closest weather observation station, located 25 miles to the west, was reporting westerly winds at 20 knots, with gusts to 26 knots, at the time of the accident.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.