ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 282314
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| Date: | Thursday 1 September 2022 |
| Time: | 18:25 |
| Type: |  Bell 412 |
| Owner/operator: | HeliBravo |
| Registration: | EC-MEJ |
| MSN: | 33064 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1982 |
| Engine model: | Pratt Whitney PT6B-3B |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Paranhos, Amares, Braga -
 Portugal
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | Fire fighting |
| Departure airport: | Arcos de Valdevez Heliport |
| Investigating agency: | GPIAAF |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
At 16:48 UTC, a Bell 412 helicopter registered EC-MEJ, using callsign H60, was called to fight a forest fire near Paranhos, Amares.
The flight began at 16:57 from the operator’s base at Arcos de Valdevez heliport, 10NM North of the fire, carrying the pilot plus a team of eight firefighters from Unidade de Emergência de Proteção e Socorro (UEPS/GNR), the firefighting equipment and a bambi-bucket.
After dropping-off the intervention team, the pilot, in contact with another helicopter working in the same area, flew looking for a nearby water collection spot for the first load of water and drop over the fire area.
Repeating the loading and releasing cycle, the helicopter made eight drops of water on the front of the fire west of a 150kV power transmission line that crossed the site. With the progression of the fire to the east, the pilot made two drops to the east of that line. On the eleventh approach to the front of fire, the pilot, knowledgeable of the existence and location of the power transmission lines on site, made a direct approach from the loading point, located at Homem River to the north of the fire, followed by a right-hand turn establishing the trajectory for the third and last drop of the day to the east of the power line.
At 18:22, during the said turn to the right, the pilot was surprised by the position of the high voltage line in front of him, immediately releasing the water while trying to maneuver to the right in descent to avoid the collision. He ended up colliding with the two lower cables of the power line, initially with the main rotor and then with the tail rotor that separated from the aircraft becoming intertwined in one of the cables of the high voltage power line.
The loss of control of the aircraft was inevitable and consequent abrupt fall practically vertical of the point of impact. Given the dense vegetation and the negative slope favourable to the aircraft's energy dissipation trajectory, the phased, although violent impact, allowed conditions for the pilot's survival.
The determined cause for the accident was the collision of the main and tail rotors on the high-voltage cables while flying at low altitude during the operation to fight a rural fire.
The following contributed to the acciden
- the decision to fight a forest fire that was progressing along and beneath high voltage power lines that crisscrossed the valley;
- the different trajectory for the last discharge of the day chosen by the pilot in convergence with the power transmission lines;
- the relative position and arrangement of the cables in their supports in vertical configuration occupying a considerable volume in the valley:
- the position of the aircraft relative to the sun following a westerly course, creating difficult visibility conditions;
- the pilot's focus on completing the firefighting mission, relativizing the risk of imminent collision when flying near high-voltage lines in terrain of complex orography.
- non-compliance by the pilot with the operational recommendations for the NO-FLY Zone around the high and very high voltage wires.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
https://ominho.pt/helicoptero-que-caiu-em-amares-e-o-bell-412-sediado-em-arcos-de-valdevez/
https://www.cmjornal.pt/portugal/detalhe/helicoptero-de-combate-aos-incendios-cai-em-amares?ref=DET_CarrosselNoticiasHP
https://www.jetphotos.com/photo/10680275
http://www.gpiaa.gov.pt/wwwbase/wwwinclude/ficheiro.aspx?tipo=0&id=10806&ambiente=WebSiteMenu
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 02-Sep-2022 06:53 | Zanik | Added |
| 02-Sep-2022 06:54 | harro | Updated [Narrative] |
| 11-Sep-2022 16:56 | harro | Updated [Departure airport, Source, Narrative, Category] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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