Bell 47G-3B N73995
11 July 2008 · Port Edwards, Wisconsin, United States · Minor injuries
Summary
On 11 July 2008 at about 20:45 local time, a Bell 47G-3B registered N73995, operated by Reabe Spraying Service, was involved in an accident near Port Edwards, Wisconsin, United States. One person was on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.
The record
- Date
- at 20:45
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Port Edwards, Wisconsin, United States
- Coordinates
- 44.3483, -89.9908
- Aircraft
- Bell 47G-3B
- Registration
- N73995
- Category
- Helicopter
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Reabe Spraying Service
- Operating rule
- Part 137: Agricultural
- Purpose of flight
- Aerial Application
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Port Edwards → Unknown
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- CHI08CA192
People
1 person had minor injuries.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Probable cause
The pilot failed to maintain control of the helicopter when he inadvertently flared the helicopter and the rotor rpm decayed as a result of sustaining bee stings during an aerial application flight. Contributing to the accidnet included the bees and the low altitude.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The commercial helicopter pilot reported that he was spraying a cranberry field. During a swath run, numerous bees entered the cockpit via the vent window. He was stung in the left arm twice, and as he tried to remove the bees, he inadvertently pitched the helicopter up. The helicopter climbed to about 35 feet above ground level and the rotor RPM decayed, and the airspeed went to about 30 MPH. The pilot attempted to return to level flight and added power, but he realized that the rotor RPM had decayed too much for a normal recovery. He reported that he "aggressively flared in an effort to reduce my groundspeed." During the flare, the tail boom struck the ground and then the main rotor struck the tail boom. The helicopter yawed right and impacted the terrain.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Bell 47 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 Oct 2008 | Bell 47J-2A | Florence, Arizona, United States | Loflite LLC | No injuries | - |
| 24 Jul 2008 | Bell 47G-4A | Mayville, Wisconsin, United States | Reabe Flying Service | Fatal | 1 |
| 11 Apr 2008 | Bell 47G-3B-1 | Denio, Nevada, United States | Helicopter Roundup Service, LLC | No injuries | - |
| 14 Aug 2008 | Bell 47G-3B | Kenyon, Minnesota, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 1 Jul 2008 | Bell 47G-3B | Mullen, Nebraska, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 15 Jul 2008 | Bell 47G-3B-1 | Shafter, California, United States | Slykerman Ag Aviation, Inc. | No injuries | - |
All 1,633 records for this type
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 Dec 2008 | McDonnell Douglas DC-9-50 | Madison, Wisconsin, United States | Northwest Airlines Inc | No injuries | - |
| 17 Dec 2008 | Cessna 402 | Madison, Wisconsin, United States | Freight Runners Express, Inc. | No injuries | - |
| 16 Feb 2008 | Cessna 150G | Viroqua, Wisconsin, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 6 Feb 2008 | American AA-1A | Grantsburg, Wisconsin, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 20 Sep 2008 | Powrachute PEGASUS | New London, Wisconsin, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 4 Apr 2008 | Bardouche QUAD CITY ULTRALIGHT | Pulaski, Wisconsin, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |