Robinson Helicopter R44 accident near Marion, KY
On July 5, 2010, a Robinson Helicopter R44 (helicopter) was involved in an accident near Marion, KY. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- July 5, 2010
- Place
- Marion, KY
- Aircraft
- Robinson Helicopter R44 · Helicopter
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 37.185°N, 88.136°W
- NTSB ID
- 20100705X12909
Official records · ERA10LA348
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
On July 5, 2010, at 1745 central daylight time, a Robinson R-44, N857PM, collided with a guy wire near Marion, Kentucky. The certificated commercial pilot was fatally injured. The helicopter came to rest in a field and was substantially damaged by post crash fire. The helicopter was registered to and operated by Forest Tech LLC., under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 137 as an aerial application flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed. The flight departed the private strip at 1743. According to a witness, the pilot was conducting an aerial spray operation in a corn field. He observed the helicopter take off and fly to the edge of the field to begin an aerial application run. The witness turned around and heard a loud “pop”. He turned back around and observed the helicopter collide with a power line guy wire and the ground before bursting in flames. The pilot, age 55, held a commercial pilot certificate for rotorcraft helicopter issued on March 6, 2009, and a second-class medical certificate issued on September 17, 2009, with the limitation, must wear lenses for distant vision and have glasses for near vision. A review of the pilot's logbook by the FAA revealed the pilot logged 532.9 hours in type. The pilot logged 611.3 total flight hours of which 190.1 hours were aerial application. The pilot had flown 28 hours within the last 90 days. The four-seat, skid equipped helicopter, serial number 1034 was manufactured in 2001. It was powered by a Lycoming O-540, 250-horsepower engine. A review of the helicopters logbo
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from power lines during an aerial application flight.
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Browse: Kentucky · Robinson 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.
