Agusta A119 accident near Mancos, CO
On June 30, 2005, an Agusta A119 (helicopter) was involved in an accident near Mancos, CO. 3 people died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- June 30, 2005
- Place
- Mancos, CO
- Aircraft
- Agusta A119 · Helicopter
- Injuries
- 3 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 37.401°N, 108.142°W
- NTSB ID
- 20050719X01059
Official records · DEN05FA103
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On June 30, 2005, at 1357 mountain daylight time, an Agusta A119 helicopter, N403CF, operated by Tri-State Care Flight, LLC, of Bullhead City, Arizona, as "Care Flight 4" and piloted by a commercial pilot, was substantially damaged when it impacted terrain while approaching to land at a landing zone (LZ), 7.5 miles northeast of Mancos, Colorado. The pilot, flight nurse, and paramedic were fatally injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a company visual flight rules (VFR) flight plan had been filed and activated for the emergency medical service (EMS) flight being conducted under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91. The flight originated at Animas Airpark (5CO0), Durango, Colorado, at 1242. According to Tri-State Care Flight, the helicopter had been dispatched earlier to search for a 14-year-old drowning victim in the Animas River near Farmington, New Mexico. The helicopter crew eventually located the victim. While the helicopter was returning to Durango, it was dispatched to the Red Arrow Mines area, near Mancos, for a logger who had been injured in a trucking accident. The helicopter flew to 5CO0, where it was refueled from a company fuel truck (quantity unknown), then responded to the emergency. According to a volunteer fireman who was standing at the LZ and directing the helicopter, the pilot made a low pass, then circled around to make his landing approach. The fireman said the temperature was "about 80 degrees [F.]," and he advised the pilot that the winds were calm. The pilot acknowledged this information. The fireman,
Probable cause
a loss of engine power for undetermined reasons and the pilot's inability to get into autorotation prior to impacting the ground. A factor contributing to the accident was the helicopter's low altitude when power was lost.
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Browse: Colorado · Agusta aircraft
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
