Eurocopter EC130 B4 accident near Seminole, OK
On January 2, 2013, an Eurocopter EC130 B4 (helicopter) was involved in an accident near Seminole, OK. 4 people were seriously injured. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- January 2, 2013
- Place
- Seminole, OK
- Aircraft
- Eurocopter EC130 B4 · Helicopter
- Injuries
- 0 fatal, 4 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 35.307°N, 96.581°W
- NTSB ID
- 20130102X73050
Official records · CEN13FA121
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On January 2, 2013, about 1245 central standard time, a Eurocopter EC130 B4 helicopter, N334AM, experienced a hard landing following a loss of engine power near Seminole, Oklahoma. The commercial pilot and three crew members were seriously injured. The helicopter sustained substantial damage. The helicopter was owned and operated by Air Methods, Centennial, Colorado, under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a positioning flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and a company visual flight rules flight plan was filed, and activated. The flight departed from the Seminole Regional Airport (KSRE), Seminole, Oklahoma, at 1242, and was en route to a hospital in Okemah, Oklahoma. According to a statement provided by the pilot, on the morning of January 2, 2013, they received a standby call for a response to an accident scene. The pilot checked weather for the flight. He went and removed the helicopter inlet cover and the flight was requested to launch. The pilot performed a walk around inspection of the helicopter and started the helicopter normally. Shortly after takeoff, while climbing through 1,600 and 1,700 feet mean sea level (msl), the pilot heard a sound like something had struck the helicopter and the engine stopped producing power. The pilot had limited recollection of the next events but recalled that while performing an autorotation, he made a right turn to an open field. While maneuvering to land to the field he saw a previously undetected barbed wire fence. He increased the collective pitch to clear the fence, then
Probable cause
The loss of engine power due to ice ingestion. Contributing to the accident was maintenance personnel’s delayed decision to install the helicopter's engine inlet cover until after the engine had been exposed to moisture and freezing temperatures and their inadequate daily preflight/airworthiness checks, which did not detect the ice formation.
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Browse: Oklahoma · Eurocopter 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.
