Bell 206 N39LR

Summary

On 16 July 2018 at about 13:00 local time, a Bell 206 registered N39LR, operated by Blackstar LLC, was involved in an accident near New Castle, Indiana, 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

16 July 2018 at 13:00

Classification

Accident

Location

New Castle, Indiana, United States

Coordinates

39.5647, -85.2356

Aircraft

Bell 206

Registration

N39LR

Category

Helicopter

Year built

1981

Engines

1

Operator

Blackstar LLC

Operating rule

Part 137: Agricultural

Purpose of flight

Aerial Application

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

New Castle → New Castle

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

GAA18CA424

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's failure to ensure that the fill hose was disconnected from the helicopter before takeoff, which resulted in the fill hose striking the tail rotor and the subsequent loss of tail rotor effectiveness. Contributing to the accident was inadequate communication between the ground crewman and the pilot.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

According to the helicopter pilot, during an agricultural flight, he landed on the tender truck platform. The ground crewman connected a hose to fill the hopper, but he did not provide positive communication to the pilot regarding task completion. Consequently, "due to crew miscommunication," the pilot took off with the hose still connected to the helicopter. The tail rotor struck the hose, and the pilot lost tail rotor effectiveness. The helicopter entered an uncontrollable right spin, and the pilot lowered the collective. The helicopter descended, struck the ground, and then rolled over. The helicopter sustained substantial damage to the tailboom, tail rotor system, main rotor system, and the skids. The pilot reported that the accident could have been prevented by implementing a documented operating procedure to ensure positive communication between the ground crew and pilot. The pilot reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.