Eurocopter EC130 accident near Peach Springs, AZ

On February 11, 2018, an Eurocopter EC130 (helicopter) was involved in an accident near Peach Springs, AZ. 5 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.

Date

February 11, 2018

Place

Peach Springs, AZ

Aircraft

Eurocopter EC130 · Helicopter

Injuries

5 fatal, 2 serious, 0 minor

Damage

Destroyed

Position

35.967°N, 113.769°W

NTSB ID

20180210X14603

Official records · WPR18MA087

• Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
• Investigation page: status, final report and safety recommendations

Air traffic control records

• Excerpt From Transcript With Pilot: Transcript (PDF), on ntsb.gov

NTSB summary

HISTORY OF FLIGHT On February 10, 2018, about 1719 mountain standard time (mst), an Airbus Helicopters EC130 B4 helicopter, N155GC, was destroyed when it was involved in an accident near Peach Springs, Arizona. The pilot and one passenger sustained serious injuries, and five passengers were fatally injured. The helicopter was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 136 air tour flight. On the day of the accident, the pilot performed a canyon landing, and an air tour flight before the accident flight. All of the day's flights departed Boulder City Municipal Airport (BVU), Boulder City, Nevada. Both the second flight and the accident flight had a destination of Quartermaster, an unimproved landing site regularly used by the operator within the Grand Canyon's Quartermaster Canyon. The pilot's second flight of the day took place in the early afternoon and returned at 1455. The accident flight departed at 1642. The accident helicopter reached the Hoover Dam about 1652 and entered the Grand Canyon West Special Flight Rules Area 50-2 about 1713, where the pilot flew the standard helicopter route known as the “Green 4 route.” The last radar return was captured at 1717 and depicted the helicopter about 3.5 nautical miles (nm) west of the accident site, consistent with a descent into the canyon to Quartermaster. The accident helicopter was one of ten helicopters scheduled to land at the site on the afternoon of the accident. The tour operation intended for the ten helicopters to sequentially land at Quartermaster and allowed for them all to be present at the lan

Probable cause

A loss of tail rotor effectiveness, the pilot’s subsequent loss of helicopter control, and collision with terrain during an approach to land in gusting, tailwind conditions in an area of potential downdrafts and turbulence.

More accidents in AZ

• De Havilland DHC-6-300, Sep 27, 1989
• Cessna 402C, Jun 19, 1992
• Piper PA-31-350, Aug 17, 1983
• Piper PA-31-350, Feb 13, 1995
• Cessna 421C, Sep 2, 1995

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Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.