Bell 206 N123NC

Summary

On 8 November 2020 at about 19:15 local time, a Bell 206 registered N123NC, operated by North Carolina State Highway Patrol, was involved in an accident near Raleigh, North Carolina, 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

8 November 2020 at 19:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Raleigh, North Carolina, United States

Nearest airport

Garner Road Heliport (3NC2)

Coordinates

35.7321, -78.6287

Aircraft

Bell 206

Registration

N123NC

Category

Helicopter

Year built

1971

Engines

1

Operator

North Carolina State Highway Patrol

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Smithfield → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA21LA040

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's loss of helicopter control after entry into vortex ring state, which resulted in main rotor blade contact with the tailboom, and impact with the ground.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

After flying for about 1.5 hours on a training flight, the pilot of the helicopter returned to the operator’s hangar and aborted two approaches after encountering vortex ring state. He decided to land at a nearby facility to have the occupant disembark to reduce the gross weight of the helicopter, and to improve the power available margin. He departed and attempted a third approach to the hangar. At about 300 ft agl, the helicopter again encountered vortex ring state; however, there was not enough altitude to successfully complete the same recovery maneuver. The helicopter began losing altitude rapidly and while descending it impacted the tops of several trees. A main rotor blade then contacted the tail rotor drive shaft, which immediately resulted in a surge of the engine, followed by a yaw of the helicopter to the right. The pilot then conducted an autorotative landing into the middle of a nearby road. The helicopter’s tailboom, main rotor, and fuselage were substantially damaged during the accident sequence. The pilot reported that there were no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures of the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.