Eurocopter AS350 N894NA

Summary

On 29 September 2018 at about 21:10 local time, a Eurocopter AS350 registered N894NA, operated by Trans Aero Limited, was involved in an accident near Ruidoso, New Mexico, 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

29 September 2018 at 21:10

Classification

Accident

Location

Ruidoso, New Mexico, United States

Coordinates

33.3967, -105.7858

Aircraft

Eurocopter AS350

Registration

N894NA

Category

Helicopter

Year built

1996

Engines

1

Operator

Trans Aero Limited

Operating rule

Part 135: Air Taxi & Commuter

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Artesia → El Paso

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

GAA18CA571

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's failure to maintain the proper descent rate during landing. Contributing to the accident were the pilot’s failure to conduct preflight performance calculations, which resulted in his operating the helicopter in high-density altitude conditions, and his lack of experience in high-altitude, mountainous flying.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The helicopter pilot was conducting an emergency medical services flight. He reported that, while en route to a ski resort to pick up a patient, he decided to conduct an eastbound reconnaissance over the landing site to scan for obstacles. He saw two cables in front and below the helicopter 's flightpath and initiated a go-around. He added power to clear the cables, and once the tail cleared the cables, he lowered the collective due to a slight drop in the main rotor speed. As he continued the go-around, he initiated a 180º left turn to attempt an approach to the landing site. During the westward approach and while the helicopter was about 20 ft above ground level, he raised the collective to reduce the descent rate, and the main rotor speed subsequently decayed. He felt that, due to the "faster than normal" descent rate, he would not be able to cushion the landing. Before touchdown, a medical crewmember spotted an elevated steel barrier cable below the helicopter, and the pilot made a 90º left turn to avoid a tail rotor strike. The helicopter subsequently touched down hard, bounced, rotated about 180º counterclockwise over the barrier cable, slid down an embankment, and came to rest upright. The helicopter sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and vertical stabilizer. The director of operations reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot reported that, during his preflight preparation, he did not calculate the hover-in-ground-effect value, the hover out-of-ground-effect value, or the density altitude for the designated landing site. He added that the accident flight was his second flight in a high-altitude, mountainous environment and that most of his flight hours were accumulated at sea level. He was not aware that the ski resort provided an approach, landing, and takeoff procedure. He added that he should have completed the go-around and circled back around to land. A Federal Aviation Administration inspector reported that, at the time of the accident, the density altitude for the landing site at 9,793 ft was over 12,000 ft.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.