ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 280942
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| Date: | Friday 16 August 1991 |
| Time: | 09:30 |
| Type: |  Enstrom F-28F |
| Owner/operator: | Southern Air Ltd |
| Registration: | G-BRCP |
| MSN: | 761 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 2 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Location: | Catsfield Shooting Centre, near Crowhurst, East Sussex -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | Taxi |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | |
| Catsfield Shooting Centre, near Crowhurst, East Sussex |
Enstrom F-28F G-BRCP: Substantially damaged 16 August 1991 when flew into electricity overhead wires at Crowhurst, Sussex
Whilst hover taxying before landing at the Catsfield Shooting Centre, near Crowhurst, East Sussex on the morning of 16 August 1991, the main rotor mast of Enstrom F-28F G-BRCP struck overhead an electricity cable which was about 20 feet above the ground. This broke the cable, which wrapped itself around the main rotor mast and caused the Enstrom to land heavily. Whilst the two people on board were uninjured, and able to leave the helicopter without assistance or difficulty, it was badly damaged - the damage being to the main rotor blades and head, power transmission, landing skids, tail boom and tail rotor blades, the engine itself being shock loaded. However it seems that it was repaired and flew again. The severed cable took out the main local electricity supply for some time.
The pilot of the Enstrom said that he had not seen the electricity cable before hitting it. He had made his visual landing site inspection from 1000 feet (not wishing to descend lower for fearing of disturbing the resident pheasants). Furthermore the poles carrying the cable were spaced 300 feet apart, and situated in hedgerow trees outside his line of vision on approach, and his low height meant that the cable blended into the foliage of the tall hedge behind it.
The crash location of Crowhurst is an isolated village situated five miles (8 km) north-west of Hastings in East Sussex (although the postal address is "Battle TN33 9DL").
Enstrom F-28F G-BRCP was repaired and re-registered as G-SNAZ on 31 October 1994. As G-SNAZ, the UK registration was cancelled on 17 December 2003, when it was re-registered in Poland as SP-GRV. Later sold to Israel and re-registered as 4X-BEU
Sources:
1. AAIB Final Report: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5422eb02e5274a1314000049/Enstrom_F-28F__G-BRCP_10-91.pdf
2. https://sussexhistoryforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=18556.0
3. http://www.rotorspot.nl/product/f28.php
4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crowhurst,_East_Sussex
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 30-Jul-2022 12:41 | Dr. John Smith | Added |
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