Eurocopter France AS350 B2 accident near Nuiqsut, AK
On August 22, 2006, an Eurocopter France AS350 B2 (helicopter) was involved in an accident near Nuiqsut, AK. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- August 22, 2006
- Place
- Nuiqsut, AK
- Aircraft
- Eurocopter France AS350 B2 · Helicopter
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 70.310°N, 152.056°W
- NTSB ID
- 20060905X01290
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On August 21, 2006, about 1920 Alaska daylight time, a Canadian registered Eurocopter AS350 B2 helicopter, C-FYUN, was destroyed when it impacted water during an external load operation, about 20 miles northwest of Nuiqsut, Alaska. The helicopter was being operated under contract from Prism Helicopters, Wasilla, Alaska, by the United States Geological Survey (USGS), Reston, Virginia, as a visual flight rules (VFR) public use local flight under Title 14, CFR Part 91, when the accident occurred. The solo commercial certificated pilot received fatal injuries. Marginal visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and company flight following procedures were in effect. The flight's destination was Inigok, Alaska. During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC) on August 22, an FAA specialist at the FAA Regional Operations Center (ROC) in Anchorage, Alaska, said the helicopter had been dispatched from Inigok on the evening of August 21, to retrieve an external load at the Fish Creek Well 1 site, about 40 miles northeast of Inigok, and about 20 miles west of Nuiqsut. The specialist said the helicopter pilot did not report arriving at or leaving the Fish Creek site, and had not returned to Inigok. She said the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center (AFRCC) had been notified, but low clouds, fog, and darkness had precluded aircraft from searching the area. The helicopter's wreckage was discovered by searchers in a shallow lake, about 1100 on August 22. On August 23, during an interview with the IIC, the
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from the sling load during cruise flight, which resulted in the load becoming entangled in the tail rotor, and an in-flight loss of control.
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Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
