Summary
On September 09, 1997, a Bell 206B (N90115) was involved in an accident near Minden, NV. The accident resulted in 2 minor injuries, with 2 people uninjured out of 4 aboard. The aircraft sustained substantial damage.
The National Transportation Safety Board determined the probable cause of this accident to be: A hard landing due to the failure of the pilot to adequately compensate for the wind direction and velocity on initiating his approach to the landing area, resulting in a loss of tail rotor authority.
On September 9, 1997, at 1535 hours Pacific daylight time, a Bell 206B, N90115, experienced a hard landing and substantial damage on a parking area pad at the Minden, Nevada, airport. Upon ground impact, a main rotor blade separated and struck a parked and unoccupied Cessna 182, causing substantial damage. There were minor injuries to the pilot and one of the passengers. The other two passengers were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions existed at the time and no flight plan was on file. The personal flight was terminating at the time.
FAA inspectors from the Reno Flight Standards District Office responded to the airport, interviewed the pilot, and inspected the aircraft. At the time of the accident, the winds were 190 to 250 degrees at 15 knots, gusting to 23 knots.
This accident is documented in NTSB report LAX97LA320. AviatorDB cross-references NTSB investigation data with FAA registry records to provide comprehensive safety information for aircraft N90115.
Accident Details
Probable Cause and Findings
A hard landing due to the failure of the pilot to adequately compensate for the wind direction and velocity on initiating his approach to the landing area, resulting in a loss of tail rotor authority.
Aircraft Information
Registered Owner (Historical)
Analysis
On September 9, 1997, at 1535 hours Pacific daylight time, a Bell 206B, N90115, experienced a hard landing and substantial damage on a parking area pad at the Minden, Nevada, airport. Upon ground impact, a main rotor blade separated and struck a parked and unoccupied Cessna 182, causing substantial damage. There were minor injuries to the pilot and one of the passengers. The other two passengers were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions existed at the time and no flight plan was on file. The personal flight was terminating at the time.
FAA inspectors from the Reno Flight Standards District Office responded to the airport, interviewed the pilot, and inspected the aircraft. At the time of the accident, the winds were 190 to 250 degrees at 15 knots, gusting to 23 knots. As the pilot continued his approach to the landing pad in a northeasterly direction, the helicopter yawed to the right and the pilot applied full left pedal and pulled collective. The pilot later told the inspectors that the engine was running fine, and he had experienced "no unusual noise," and that he had "run out of tail rotor."
A review of a relative wind chart provided by Bell Helicopter Textron shows that the helicopter's heading during the approach to the pad placed it in an area of the chart where unanticipated right yaw might occur. The chart is appended to this report.
Data Source
Data provided by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). For more information on this event, visit the NTSB Records Search website. NTSB# LAX97LA320