Bell 407 N663SF

Summary

On 25 December 2019 at about 23:13 local time, a Bell 407 registered N663SF was involved in an accident near Headland, Alabama, United States. 3 people were on board and one died. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

25 December 2019 at 23:13

Classification

Accident

Location

Headland, Alabama, United States

Nearest airport

Headland Municipal (0J6)

Coordinates

31.3642, -85.3125

Aircraft

Bell 407

Registration

N663SF

Category

Helicopter

Year built

2000

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 135: Air Taxi & Commuter

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Headland → Headland

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Dusk

NTSB number

ERA20FA056

1 person died.

Pilot incapacitation by a sudden cardiac event related to severe coronary artery disease, which resulted in a loss of helicopter control.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

According to the flight nurse and paramedic, the flight was normal until the helicopter suddenly rolled to the left as they approached the helipad during landing. The pilot made no attempt to correct the roll, and the helicopter rolled onto its side and the main rotors contacted the ground. The pilot was immediately observed to be unresponsive and not breathing, and the flight nurse and paramedic began CPR as quickly as they could extricate the pilot from the cockpit. Autopsy of the pilot revealed severe coronary artery disease that placed him at significant increased risk for sudden death from an acute coronary event. Given the pilot's sudden inability to pilot the helicopter safely, the recognition by certified medical personnel that he was unresponsive and not breathing immediately following the accident, and the fact that he did not suffer enough blunt force trauma to have caused immediate cardiac arrest, it is most likely that the accident occurred because the pilot became incapacitated from an acute cardiac event.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.