ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 343327
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| Date: | Sunday 6 August 2023 |
| Time: | 15:20 |
| Type: |  Boeing CH-46E Sea Knight |
| Owner/operator: | Sky Aviation |
| Registration: | N461WY |
| MSN: | 2438 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1968 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 3 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Springerville, AZ -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | Fire fighting |
| Departure airport: | Show Low Airport, AZ (SOW/KSOW) |
| Springerville, AZ | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information verified through data from accident investigation authorities |
On August 5, 2023, about 1520 mountain standard time, a Boeing CH-46 helicopter, N461WY, was destroyed when it was involved in an accident near Springerville, Arizona. The pilot, copilot and passenger were not injured. The helicopter was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 133 external load flight in support of firefighting operations.
The privately owned helicopter was performing firefighting operations under a contract with the United States Forest Service (USFS) in response to the Corduroy Fire.
The pilot reported that they had performed firefighting water drop activities for about 2 hours. After they had filled the bucket with water and began to climb, the crew heard an extremely loud horn in their helmets; loud enough that it was difficult to understand what was being said. The pilot noticed that the No. 2 torque indicator was “maxed out” and the No. 1 torque indicator was about 60%.
The pilot released the water in the bucket and initiated a turn to an open field. The pilot then slowly retarded the No. 2 engine control lever to match the torque. He noted that the torque for both engines matched about 90%. Upon turning final for his intended landing field, the pilot noticed that the descent rate increased. The pilot told his crew chief to jettison the bucket as he placed the No. 2 engine control lever to the fly position. Subsequently, the helicopter landed hard and rolled onto its right side. The engines were shut down and the co-pilot and crewchief assisted the pilot in exiting the helicopter. Moments later, a post impact fire ensued.
The wreckage was recovered to a secured facility for further examination.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB
FAA
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 08-Aug-2023 08:21 | harro | Added |
| 08-Aug-2023 08:33 | harro | Updated |
| 29-Aug-2023 18:40 | Captain Adam | Updated |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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