Bell 407 accident near McFarland, CA
On December 11, 2015, a Bell 407 (helicopter) was involved in an accident near McFarland, CA. 4 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- December 11, 2015
- Place
- McFarland, CA
- Aircraft
- Bell 407 · Helicopter
- Injuries
- 4 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 35.674°N, 119.056°W
- NTSB ID
- 20151211X13514
Official records · WPR16FA037
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On December 10, 2015, at 1903 Pacific standard time, a Bell 407 helicopter, N408FC, was destroyed when it impacted terrain during cruise flight near McFarland, California. The commercial pilot, flight paramedic, flight nurse, and patient sustained fatal injuries. The helicopter was registered to American Airborne EMS, Fresno, California, and was operated by Rogers Helicopters, Inc., doing business as SkyLife, under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 135 Air Medical Flight as call sign SkyLife 4. Night visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a company visual flight rules (VFR) flight plan was filed. The cross-country flight originated from the Porterville Municipal Airport (PVT), Porterville, California, at 1849 with an intended destination of San Joaquin Community Hospital, Bakersfield, California. Information provided by the helicopter operator, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and local law enforcement officials indicated that the helicopter was initially dispatched from Visalia Municipal Airport (VIS), Visalia, California, to facilitate the transfer of a patient from PVT to a hospital helipad in Bakersfield. Data recovered from a handheld Garmin GPSMap 396 GPS unit revealed that the helicopter departed from VIS about 1734, arrived at PVT about 1756. The operator's check pilot stated that he talked with the accident pilot via telephone about 1800. During this conversation, the accident pilot told the check pilot that he had just arrived at PVT and had checked the weather for Bakersfield, noting that visibility of 6 mi
Probable cause
The pilot's loss of control and collision with terrain while attempting a course reversal after inadvertently entering an area of reduced visibility weather conditions. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's lack of recent experience with night time operations.
More accidents in CA
- Douglas MD-83, Feb 1, 2000
- Mcdonnell Douglas DC-9-32, Aug 31, 1986
- British Aerospace BAE-146-200, Dec 8, 1987
- Beech C-99, Aug 24, 1984
- Sikorsky S-61N, Aug 6, 2008
Browse: California · Bell 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.
