Bell 206B N206WA

Summary

On 9 September 2008 at about 14:10 local time, a Bell 206B registered N206WA, operated by Chem Air Inc, was involved in an accident near Eutaw, Alabama, 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

9 September 2008 at 14:10

Classification

Accident

Location

Eutaw, Alabama, United States

Coordinates

32.8553, -87.8792

Aircraft

Bell 206B

Registration

N206WA

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Chem Air Inc

Operating rule

Part 137: Agricultural

Purpose of flight

Aerial Application

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Eutaw → Eutaw

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

NYC08CA309

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's inadequate preflight inspection.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot landed the Bell 206B helicopter and was preparing for the ninth aerial agricultural application flight of the day. Ground personnel added fuel and chemical to the helicopter in preparation for the flight. The normal process for refueling was for one person to be in the fuel truck and one person on the ground near the helicopter. When the fuel tank was full, the person at the helicopter gives a "thumbs up" to the person in the truck, who turns off the valve. After disconnecting the hose from the helicopter, the person at the helicopter gives another "thumbs up" to the pilot, and the pilot should then verify the hose has been disconnected from the helicopter. When the helicopter requires the loading of both chemical and fuel, the number of hand signals doubles. During the accident sequence, the pilot saw the ground person give a "thumbs up" and turn away from the helicopter. He assumed the hose had been disconnected, but did not visually verify that it had. As he lifted the helicopter to a hover, it pitched down, rolled to the right, and contacted the ground, substantially damaging the fuselage and tail boom. The person on the ground reported he "mistakenly gave the all clear signal" before the hose was disconnected.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.