ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 287143
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| Date: | Monday 2 March 2009 |
| Time: | 07:20 LT |
| Type: |  Bell 206L-4 |
| Owner/operator: | Rotorcraft Leasing Company, LLC |
| Registration: | N410RL |
| MSN: | 52310 |
| Year of manufacture: | 2005 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 5118 hours |
| Engine model: | Rolls Royce 260c30 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Galliano, Louisiana -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Standing |
| Nature: | Ferry/positioning |
| Departure airport: | Galliano-South Lafourche Leonard Miller Jr Airport, LA (KGAO) |
| Galliano-South Lafourche Leonard Miller Jr Airport, LA (KGAO) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The commercial pilot was starting the single-engine helicopter's engine when he heard a loud bang and vibration. He immediately shut down the engine and exited the helicopter. Examination of the helicopter revealed that the tail rotor driveshaft and coupling had severed just forward of the gearbox, which resulted in substantial damage to the tail boom. The helicopter had undergone recent maintenance to the tail rotor gearbox input seal which included the removal of the tail rotor drive shaft from the coupling. When the two components were reattached, the mechanic only hand-tightened the bolts, figuring additional maintenance was still planned for the gearbox. He then installed the tail rotor drive shaft shaft cover. The mechanic moved on to another project and did not make a logbook entry of the work that he had completed or that the bolts were only hand-tightened. Another mechanic later performed additional maintenance to the gearbox, but the bolts were not checked since the maintenance manual did not require the removal of the tail rotor driveshaft cover. A .2-hour maintenance flight check was conducted and the helicopter was returned to service. The accident occurred on first engine start after it had been returned to service.
Probable Cause: The failure of the tail rotor driveshaft and coupling during engine start due to the mechanic's failure to properly reattach the tail rotor driveshaft and coupling during maintenance.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB CEN09LA198
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 04-Oct-2022 07:42 | ASN Update Bot | Added |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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