ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 356475
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| Date: | Monday 18 November 1996 |
| Time: | 18:08 LT |
| Type: |  Bell 206B-3 |
| Owner/operator: | Rainbow Helicopters Inc. |
| Registration: | N921RB |
| MSN: | 2742 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 16284 hours |
| Engine model: | Allison 250-C20B |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Ballston, OR -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | Unknown |
| Departure airport: | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
Witnesses observed the helicopter begin a left turn from north to west, then begin rotating to the left, after lifting an external load of Christmas trees. The helicopter rotated about 1 to 1 1/2 turns, then impacted the ground on its left side. Local winds at the time were from the southeast at 5 to 15 knots, according to the witnesses. On-site investigators found no evidence of airframe or engine malfunction, and noted dirt and packed mud in the engine compressor. The pilot, who was seriously injured, had no recollection of the accident sequence. In a test run of the engine at the manufacturer's facilities, the engine would not produce more than normal cruise power, but the manufacturer's test report stated that the only observable cause for this was extensive foreign object damage to the inlet guide vanes and first stage compressor blades. The engine fuel control and governor were also functionally tested and found to be slightly out of limits at certain test points, but the manufacturer stated that the exceedances observed would not significantly affect engine power output.
Probable Cause: a loss of control for undetermined reasons.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB SEA97LA029
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 13-Mar-2024 07:35 | ASN Update Bot | Added |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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