American Eurocopter AS350B3 N350GP
15 July 2014 · Grand Praire, Texas, United States · No injuries
Summary
On 15 July 2014 at about 21:00 local time, a American Eurocopter AS350B3 registered N350GP, operated by Airbus Helicopters Inc, was involved in an accident near Grand Praire, Texas, United States. 2 people were 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.
The record
- Date
- at 21:00
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Grand Praire, Texas, United States
- Nearest airport
- Grand Prairie Manicipal (KGPM)
- Coordinates
- 32.7000, -97.0481
- Aircraft
- American Eurocopter AS350B3
- Registration
- N350GP
- Category
- Helicopter
- Year built
- 2012
- Operator
- Airbus Helicopters Inc
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Instructional
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Grand Praire → Grand Praire
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- CEN14CA367
People
Nobody was injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Probable cause
The flight instructor's inadequate supervision during a practice autorotation. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's hard landing during a practice autorotation.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The flight was scheduled as recurrent training in helicopters; the foreign rated pilot was accompanied by a flight instructor, and an interpreter and observer who were seated in the back seats. After a series of maneuvers, the foreign pilot conducted a hovering autorotation, following directions from the flight instructor which were translated by the interpreter. During the autorotation, the helicopter yawed slightly right and settled to the ground. The instructor and observer noted that the landing did not feel that hard, but more like a firm or rough landing. The training flight continued with several other autorotations. During a post flight inspection of the helicopter, several wrinkles were found in the tail boom of the helicopter. Further examination of the helicopter revealed that the tail boom had sustained substantial damage.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other American Eurocopter AS350B3 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 May 2014 | American Eurocopter AS350B3 | Peach Springs, Arizona, United States | Papillon Airways Inc | Fatal | 1 |
| 4 Jul 2014 | American Eurocopter AS350B3 | Fallon, Nevada, United States | Papillon Grand Canyon Helicopters | Minor injuries | - |
| 10 Jan 2014 | American Eurocopter AS350B3 | Encino, Texas, United States | US Customs and Border Protection | Serious injuries | - |
| 23 Oct 2013 | American Eurocopter AS350B3 | Eagle Pass, Texas, United States | Friedkin Companies Inc | No injuries | - |
| 24 Oct 2015 | American Eurocopter AS350B3 | Folsom, California, United States | Placer County Sheriff's Department | No injuries | - |
| 18 Aug 2012 | American Eurocopter AS350B3 | Sunburst, Montana, United States | Dept of Homeland Security Customs & Border | No injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 Jul 2014 | Cessna 177B | Georgetown, Texas, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 22 Apr 2014 | Crow MUSTANG II | Morton, Texas, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 25 Oct 2014 | Stol UC 1 | Jacksonville, Texas, United States | Yellow Peril Aero LLC | Minor injuries | - |
| 12 Jun 2014 | Air Tractor AT 301 | Pearsall, Texas, United States | Smith Company Flying Service | No injuries | - |
| 10 Sep 2014 | Smith AEROSTAR 601P | Austin, Texas, United States | Anderson David | Fatal | 1 |
| 4 Jun 2014 | Teunis STARDUSTER TOO SA300 | Fort Worth, Texas, United States | Carter Robert E | Serious injuries | - |