Bell 206L 3 accident near Ancho, NM
On September 16, 2017, a Bell 206L 3 (helicopter) was involved in an accident near Ancho, NM. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- September 16, 2017
- Place
- Ancho, NM
- Aircraft
- Bell 206L 3 · Helicopter
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 33.912°N, 105.527°W
- NTSB ID
- 20170916X35842
Official records · CEN17FA355
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn September 16, 2017, about 1635 mountain daylight time, a Bell 206L-3 helicopter, N213TV, impacted terrain near Ancho, New Mexico. The pilot, sole occupant, was fatally injured, and the helicopter was destroyed. The helicopter was registered to LIN Television Corporation, Providence, Rhode Island, and operated by WQRE, TV 13, Albuquerque, New Mexico, as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 business fight. Day visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight, which originated about 1554 from Roswell International Air Center Airport (ROW), Roswell, New Mexico, destined for Albuquerque International Sunport (ABQ), Albuquerque, New Mexico. The day before the accident the pilot had previously flown from ABQ to ROW to conduct a news story in the Carlsbad, New Mexico area, and then spent the night in Roswell before the return flight. A person located near the accident site reported that he saw smoke and drove over to investigate. The person found the helicopter wreckage and notified local authorities of the crash. He did not know the time of the crash, but speculated that it happened between 1600 and 1700. A Garmin Aera 796 GPS unit was found at the accident site. A review of the flight track from the GPS unit, revealed that the helicopter departure and northwest heading towards Albuquerque. The flight track was a straight line and started at a GPS altitude of 3,681 ft. For about the last 5 minutes of the flight track, the helicopter's GPS altitude varied between 6,200 and 6,456 ft, the last recorded altitude. The ground elevation and surround
Probable cause
The pilot's distraction by a cell phone during a low-altitude flight, which resulted in controlled flight into terrain.
More accidents in NM
- Gates Learjet 25D, Sep 5, 1993
- Piper PA-32-300, Dec 26, 1982
- Mitsubishi MU-2B-30, Jun 25, 1992
- Cessna 421C, Feb 11, 1985
- Beech 58, Mar 26, 1982
Browse: New Mexico · 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.
