Bell 47G 3B N347BH

Summary

On 2 August 2018 at about 15:20 local time, a Bell 47G 3B registered N347BH, operated by Black Hill Aerial Adventure, was involved in an accident near Custer, South Dakota, United States. 3 people were on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

2 August 2018 at 15:20

Classification

Accident

Location

Custer, South Dakota, United States

Nearest airport

Crazy Horse Base (OSD9)

Coordinates

43.8250, -103.6358

Aircraft

Bell 47G 3B

Registration

N347BH

Category

Helicopter

Year built

1962

Engines

1

Operator

Black Hill Aerial Adventure

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Custer → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN18LA306

1 person had minor injuries.

The pilot’s mismanagement of rotor RPM and subsequent forced landing on uneven terrain which led to a dynamic rollover.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The commercial-rated pilot and flight instructor were completing familiarization training in the accident helicopter. After successful training flights the morning of the accident, the flight instructor decided to remove the dual controls from the helicopter, and one additional passenger was loaded before practicing hovering and a low-rpm recovery. On approach to land during the accident flight, about 100 feet above ground level (agl), the pilot noticed the rotor rpms drop below the normal operating range. The pilot increased throttle but was unable to recover rotor rpms within the normal range. The flight instructor stated that the helicopter lost a lot of altitude quickly and there was no time to recover. The pilot attempted a forced landing on the side of a roadway but caught the right skid on uneven ground, which led to a dynamic rollover and substantially damaged the tail section and tail rotor. The flight instructor stated that the engine had no mechanical anomalies before the flight and that the engine had “performed well” during both the accident flight and previous flights. The helicopter likely lost power and altitude due to the pilot’s mismanagement of rotor rpm resulting in the pilot having to attempt a forced landing on uneven terrain and a subsequent dynamic rollover.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.