Bell UH-1H N205KS
24 June 2010 · Santa Barbara, California, United States · No injuries
Summary
On 24 June 2010 at about 22:30 local time, a Bell UH-1H registered N205KS, operated by Santa Barbara County Fire, was involved in an accident near Santa Barbara, California, United States. 5 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.
The record
- Date
- at 22:30
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Santa Barbara, California, United States
- Coordinates
- 34.5789, -119.9478
- Aircraft
- Bell UH-1H
- Registration
- N205KS
- Category
- Helicopter
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Santa Barbara County Fire
- Operating rule
- Public Use
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Santa Barbara → Santa Barbara
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- WPR10TA318
People
Nobody was injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
Probable cause
The failure of left tailboom upper attachment fitting as a result of fatigue.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The helicopter experienced a structural failure in one of the tailboom attach fittings while hovering near a cliff, about 200 feet above ground level (agl). The pilot heard a loud sound and felt the helicopter yaw slightly. He made a precautionary landing without incident. A postaccident examination of the helicopter revealed the left tailboom upper attachment fitting had fractured as a result of fatigue. The fatigue origin most likely emanated from fretting and/or corrosion pits at the fastener to fitting interface. There was no engineering data showing how the combination of the multiple STC modifications of the helicopter affected the helicopter's structural integrity.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Bell UH-1H accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 Feb 2009 | Bell UH-1H | Chanco, Chile | Sociedad Aero Flight Service | Fatal | 13 |
| 15 Jul 2008 | Bell UH-1H | Rock Springs, Wyoming, United States | Leading Edge Aviation | Minor injuries | - |
| 16 Jul 2007 | Bell UH-1H | Benchmark, Montana, United States | United States Forest Service | Minor injuries | - |
| 16 Jul 2013 | Bell UH-1H | Dove Creek, Colorado, United States | Billings Flying Service | Fatal | 1 |
| 1 Apr 2006 | Bell UH-1H | Yuba City, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 13 Nov 2006 | Bell UH-1H | Melrose, New Mexico, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 Jun 2010 | Grumman Acft Eng Cor-Schweizer G-164B | Courtland, California, United States | Walter Avery | Serious injuries | - |
| 7 Mar 2010 | Cessna 172P | Camarillo Airport, California, United States | Channel Islands Aviation Inc | No injuries | - |
| 27 Apr 2010 | Piper PA-30 | Merced, California, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 12 Oct 2010 | Robinson R22 BETA | Long Beach, California, United States | Temco Sky Networks | Serious injuries | - |
| 15 Jun 2010 | Rans COYOTE II S6 | Lincoln, California, United States | Michael S. Gorden | Fatal | 2 |
| 12 Oct 2010 | Boeing A75N1(PT17) | Palm Springs, California, United States | Kent Thomas | No injuries | - |