Eurocopter EC 130 N997PT

Summary

On 11 October 2007 at about 11:20 local time, a Eurocopter EC 130 registered N997PT was involved in an accident near Bay St Louis, Mississippi, 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

11 October 2007 at 11:20

Classification

Accident

Location

Bay St Louis, Mississippi, United States

Nearest airport

Stennis Intl (HSA)

Coordinates

30.3683, -89.4550

Aircraft

Eurocopter EC 130

Registration

N997PT

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Positioning

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Bay St Louis → Patterson

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Dawn

NTSB number

DFW08CA010

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's encounter with dynamic rollover as result of his inadequate preflight inspection.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The commercial pilot was distracted by a short conversation with another pilot during an early morning preflight inspection of the helicopter. Following the preflight inspection of the turbine powered helicopter, the commercial pilot attempted to takeoff with the right side tie-down strap still securing the helicopter to the ground. Approximately 2-to-3- feet above ground level (agl), the pilot felt a tug as the slack was removed from the strap and the helicopter entered a dynamic rollover. The main rotor blades impacted the ground and the helicopter began to spin to the left. The pilot lowered the collective and the helicopter landed hard before coming to rest in an upright position. The pilot was able to exit unassisted. An examination of the helicopter revealed that the tail boom sustained structural damage during the accident.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.