Bell 206B III N444JB

Summary

On 1 July 1996 at about 10:00 local time, a Bell 206B III registered N444JB, operated by JOE Brigham Inc., was involved in an accident near South Carver, Massachusetts, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

1 July 1996 at 10:00

Classification

Accident

Location

South Carver, Massachusetts, United States

Coordinates

Not recorded

Aircraft

Bell 206B III

Registration

N444JB

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

JOE Brigham Inc.

Operating rule

Part 137: Agricultural

Purpose of flight

Aerial Application

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

IMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

NYC96LA135

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's failure to maintain control of the helicopter during an aerial application maneuver. This put the helicopter in a low slow down wind, high power demand turn, where it encountered a loss of tail rotor effectiveness, and the subsequent collision with the marsh.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was doing aerial spraying of a cranberry bog, and had completed four passes before he executed a right turn to the north to begin the next run. After completing the turn, the helicopter began to spin to the right. After about three to four turns it stopped in a level hover, but then started spinning again to the right. After another three to four spins, it again stopped, and began a final spin to the right when it collided with the bog. Bell Helicopter Textron (BHT) published an Operations Safety Notice, in 1983, which dealt with unanticipated right yaw of the Bell 206 series. It stated that unanticipated right yaw could occur when maneuvering between hover and 30 MPH, and that a tail wind could reduce relative wind speed if a down wind translation occurred. It also stated that a loss of translational lift could result in a high power demand and an additional anti-torque requirements, which included high power demand situations such as low speed downwind turns. A local automated weather report indicated that the winds from were from 210 degrees at 6 knots. The pilot stated that the uncontrolled event initiated when he had completed a right hand application turn, and did not report a lateral cyclic displacement during the last application run.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.