Mcdonnell Douglas Heli Co 369FF accident near Fossil, OR
On October 12, 2009, a Mcdonnell Douglas Heli Co 369FF (helicopter) was involved in an accident near Fossil, OR. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- October 12, 2009
- Place
- Fossil, OR
- Aircraft
- Mcdonnell Douglas Heli Co 369FF · Helicopter
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 44.853°N, 119.938°W
- NTSB ID
- 20091012X15520
Official records · WPR10FA012
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On October 12, 2009, about 0850 Pacific daylight time, a McDonnell-Douglas 369FF helicopter, N527SH, collided with a wood power pole about 18 miles southeast of Fossil, Oregon. The commercial pilot, who was the sole occupant, was killed in the accident, and the helicopter, which was owned and operated by Pacific Rim Helicopters LLC, sustained substantial damage to most of its structure. The 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 133 external load long-line flight was being operated in visual meteorological conditions. The pilot's initial point of departure was Spray, Oregon, but he subsequently refueled the helicopter at a remote landing site, and then had been airborne again for about 20 minutes when the accident occurred. No flight plan had been filed. According to witnesses, on the morning of the accident the pilot flew in support of installing travelers/pulleys on the wood power poles, so that later ropes could be pulled through these travelers. The plan was that once all the ropes were in place on the travelers, then they would be used by ground crews to pull power lines into place on the poles. After assisting with the traveler installation from about 0700 to about 0815, the pilot landed and refueled the helicopter. He then took off again, and began to string the ropes through the travelers around 0830. The poles the rope was being connected to were between 400 feet and 500 feet apart. The rope that was being pulled at the time of the accident was being placed in the lowest traveler on the pole, which was located 32.4 feet from the top of the pole. This
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from a power pole to which he was connecting wire-pulling ropes.
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Browse: Oregon
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
