Enstrom 280FX accident near Heber City, UT
On September 3, 2011, an Enstrom 280FX (helicopter) was involved in an accident near Heber City, UT. 3 people were seriously injured. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- September 3, 2011
- Place
- Heber City, UT
- Aircraft
- Enstrom 280FX · Helicopter
- Injuries
- 0 fatal, 3 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 40.488°N, 111.338°W
- NTSB ID
- 20110903X53441
Official records · WPR11FA426
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On September 3, 2011, about 1215 mountain daylight time, an Enstrom 280FX helicopter, N280AD, was substantially damaged during impact with terrain following a loss of engine power near Heber City, Utah. The commercial pilot and two passengers were seriously injured. High Velocity Aviation was operating the helicopter under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the local air-tour flight, which had originated from Heber City Municipal Airport approximately 9 minutes before the accident. A flight plan had not been filed. The Heber Valley Chapter of the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) was holding a Heber Valley Fly-In, and High Velocity Aviation was selling helicopter rides at the fly-in. The first pilot to give rides in the helicopter on the day of the accident said that he performed a preflight inspection of the helicopter, which included removing the right-hand set of flight controls and measuring the fuel level in the tanks with a wooden calibrated stick. He determined that there were 29 to 30 gallons of fuel onboard. He said the tour flights were 2, 6, or 12 minutes in duration. The first pilot said that at 0955, he departed and flew several air tours over the next 40 minutes; he added that the passengers were exchanged with the engine running and the rotor blades were turning. When he landed, the owner and the accident pilot added 10 more gallons of fuel to the tanks. He flew a few more rides and then exchanged places with the accident pilot. The accident pilot flew for several ri
Probable cause
The pilot’s failure to ensure that there was sufficient fuel onboard to conduct the flight, which resulted in a loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion. Contributing to the severity of the passengers’ injuries was the operator’s failure to provide adequate restraints for the passengers.
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Browse: Utah · Enstrom 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.
