Bell UH 1H N790RJ

Summary

On 17 July 2016 at about 21:09 local time, a Bell UH 1H registered N790RJ, operated by King County Sheriffs Office, was involved in an accident near Mt. Adams, Washington, United States. 8 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.

Date

17 July 2016 at 21:09

Classification

Accident

Location

Mt. Adams, Washington, United States

Coordinates

46.1656, -121.4942

Aircraft

Bell UH 1H

Registration

N790RJ

Category

Helicopter

Year built

1970

Engines

1

Operator

King County Sheriffs Office

Operating rule

Public Use

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Yakima → Mt. Adams

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR16LA142

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s failure to maintain yaw control as he slowed the helicopter during a landing approach, which resulted in the loss of helicopter control due to the loss of tail rotor effectiveness.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The commercial pilot was conducting a public flight in the helicopter to transport two search and rescue personnel to a landing zone located in mountainous terrain at an elevation of about 7,800 ft. The pilot reported that he aborted his first approach, which was from the north, because he felt that he was using too much left pedal. On his second approach, which was from the south, the helicopter yawed right. The pilot recognized that a loss of tail rotor effectiveness was occurring. He attempted to recover control by reducing the collective and applying forward cyclic; however, the helicopter spun and impacted the ground. The pilot reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation. It is likely that, during the landing approach, as the helicopter's airspeed dropped below effective translational lift and the pilot added power to compensate, there was insufficient left pedal to stop the resulting right yaw, and the pilot lost control of the helicopter due to a loss of tail rotor effectiveness.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.