ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 43273
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| Date: | Sunday 16 February 1997 |
| Time: | 20:44 LT |
| Type: |  McDonnell Douglas 369D |
| Owner/operator: | San Diego Sheriff's Dept |
| Registration: | N5200Y |
| MSN: | 1198D |
| Year of manufacture: | 1982 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 4806 hours |
| Engine model: | Allison 250-C20B |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 2 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Santee, CA -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | Unknown |
| Departure airport: | El Cajon, CA (KSEE) |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The sheriff's pilot and qualified observer attempted a takeoff from a hover at a remote canyon in night visual meteorological conditions. The crew was using the helicopter's search light within the previous 15 minutes and the pilot's eyes were not dark adapted. The searchlight was turned off by the observer during the takeoff and the pilot became disoriented. The helicopter descended vertically, struck the ground, and bounced over 100 feet rearward. The public-use agency's training program did not provide for night recurrent emergency procedure training, recurrent night physiology training, or crew resource management training for night flight.
Probable Cause: Spatial disorientation and temporary visual impairment that led to a loss of aircraft control as result of difficulty to light adaptivity. Contributing was the crew coordination and inadequate night flight recurrency training.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB LAX97GA105
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 24-Oct-2008 10:30 | ASN archive | Added |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:24 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 30-May-2023 08:03 | Ron Averes | Updated [[Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency]] |
| 08-Apr-2024 16:49 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Operator, Other fatalities, Departure airport, Source, Narrative, Category, Accident report] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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