Bell 206B N16HA

Summary

On 14 November 2011 at about 22:30 local time, a Bell 206B registered N16HA, operated by Applebee Aviation Inc, was involved in an accident near Woodburn, Oregon, United States. One person was on board and one was seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

14 November 2011 at 22:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Woodburn, Oregon, United States

Nearest airport

Hubbard (7S9)

Coordinates

45.1361, -122.8233

Aircraft

Bell 206B

Registration

N16HA

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Applebee Aviation Inc

Operating rule

Part 133: Rotorcraft Ext. Load

Purpose of flight

External Load

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Oregon City → Woodburn

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR12LA036

1 person was seriously injured.

The pilot’s failure to maintain ground clearance while maneuvering with an external load line.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was using the helicopter to lift bundles of Christmas trees from a field to a loading zone with a 25-foot-long steel line. Shortly after one of the bundles was picked up, it came apart and fell from the line. As the pilot repositioned the helicopter to reattach the bundle, the line became snagged on an obstacle on the ground. He immediately reached for the line release switch, but the line did not detach, likely because he did not make positive contact with the switch. Before he could activate the manual backup release switch, the helicopter pitched down, descended, and collided with terrain. Postaccident examination of the primary and backup release systems revealed no mechanical failures or malfunctions that would have precluded normal operation. Because the helicopter was no more than 25 feet above ground level when the line snagged, even a successful activation of the line release switch may not have prevented the accident.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.