ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 58774
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| Date: | Thursday 19 February 2009 |
| Time: | 19:30 |
| Type: |  McDonnell Douglas MD 600N |
| Owner/operator: | United States Customs and Border Protection |
| Registration: | N608BP |
| MSN: | RN037 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1998 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 3571 hours |
| Engine model: | Rolls Royce 250-C47M |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 3 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | San Clemente Island, CA -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Unknown |
| Departure airport: | Long Beach Airport, CA (LGB/KLGB) |
| San Diego-Brown Field Municipal Airport, CA (SDM/KSDM) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
During cruise flight the helicopter experienced a loss of engine power. The pilot performed an autorotation, maneuvering the helicopter to avoid obstacles. The helicopter sustained substantial damage after landing hard, semi-submerged in the surf zone of a beach. During the landing sequence, a main rotor blade made contact with the tail boom and the helicopter sustained crush damage to the lower fuselage. Post accident examination of the airframe did not reveal evidence of any failure or malfunction. Examination of the engine revealed a failure of the number two bearing, resulting in a subsequent failure of the engine’s gas generator and power turbine sections. Examination of the bearing revealed signatures consistent with the inner and outer bearing races experiencing misalignment. The misalignment resulted in the associated balls becoming mechanically locked against the ball cage, leading to raceway compromise, heat damage, and bearing failure. As a result of this accident, and other in-service wear issues related to the number two bearing, the engine manufacturer has embarked on a bearing redesign process for this engine series.
Probable Cause: Failure of the engine’s number two bearing during cruise flight, which resulted in a loss of engine power.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 20-Feb-2009 22:35 | 4evergrounded | Added |
| 29-Dec-2010 06:05 | TB | Updated [Aircraft type, Cn, Operator, Location, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Damage] |
| 27-Feb-2013 09:02 | TB | Updated [Time, Aircraft type, Source, Damage] |
| 27-Feb-2013 11:20 | TB | Updated [Operator] |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:25 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 01-Dec-2017 12:10 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Operator, Other fatalities, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 09-Jul-2023 00:41 | Ron Averes | Updated [[Operator, Other fatalities, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative]] |
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