Bell 47G-3B N47AH

Summary

On 14 August 2008 at about 15:45 local time, a Bell 47G-3B registered N47AH was involved in an accident near Kenyon, Minnesota, 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.

Date

14 August 2008 at 15:45

Classification

Accident

Location

Kenyon, Minnesota, United States

Coordinates

44.3208, -92.8747

Aircraft

Bell 47G-3B

Registration

N47AH

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 137: Agricultural

Purpose of flight

Aerial Application

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Kenyon → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CHI08CA254

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's inadequate preflight planning which resulted in the helicopter settling with power.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported he had flown the helicopter on several aerial application flights earlier in the day, and that the humidity had increased as the weather cleared. He stated that the initial takeoff was normal, but that when he was about 100 yards from the support truck, the rotor rpm began to decay, and the helicopter settled into a soybean field. The spray boom caught in the crop, and the helicopter pitched forward, which resulted in the main rotor blades contacting the ground. The aft section of the tail boom, including the tail rotor, separated from the helicopter. The pilot reported there was no mechanical malfunction/failure with the helicopter. He did report that he should have decreased his load due to the weather conditions.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.