Agusta AW139 accident near Big Grand Cay, BS
On July 4, 2019, an Agusta AW139 (helicopter) was involved in an accident near Big Grand Cay, BS. 7 people died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- July 4, 2019
- Place
- Big Grand Cay, BS
- Aircraft
- Agusta AW139 · Helicopter
- Injuries
- 7 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 27.238°N, 78.304°W
- NTSB ID
- 20190704X21909
Official records · ERA19FA210
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn July 4, 2019, about 0153 eastern daylight time, an Agusta S.p.A. AW139 helicopter, N32CC, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Big Grand Cay, Abaco, Bahamas. The two pilots and five passengers were fatally injured. The helicopter was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. According to pilot-in-command’s (PIC) cellphone records, the owner of helicopter (who also owned the company the PIC flew for) called him about 2324 on July 3. The owner reportedly called the PIC to inform him that he needed the PIC to fly his daughter and her friend from the Bahamas to the United States for medical treatment. About 8 minutes later, the PIC contacted a friend of the owner who was also on the Island. The friend reported that the PIC told him that he would be flying from Florida to Big Grand Cay and that he would need lights to illuminate the private helipad at Big Grand Cay. About 2338, the PIC called back the friend and reported that he had "to get someone to come with him" for the flight. The PIC called the second-in-command (SIC) about 2343 to notify him that he was needed for the flight. The SIC's wife reported that, after being notified about the flight, the SIC began to check the weather and looked at landing sites. According to data from the combination cockpit voice recorder (CVR) and flight data recorder (FDR), the flight departed Palm Beach International Airport (PBI), West Palm Beach, Florida, about 0055 on July 4, destined for Big Grand Cay. During the flight, the PIC was the pilot flying (PF)
Probable cause
The pilots’ decision to takeoff over water in dark night conditions with no external visual reference, which resulted in spatial disorientation and subsequent collision with the water. Also causal was the pilots’ failure to adequately monitor their instruments and respond to multiple EGPWS warnings to arrest the helicopter’s descent. Contributing to the pilots’ decision was external pressure to co
More accidents in BS
- Gates Learjet Corp. 35A, Nov 9, 2014
- Cessna 402, Oct 5, 2010
- Piper PA-23-250, Jan 17, 2018
- Mitsubishi MU2B, May 15, 2017
- Cessna 340A, Aug 18, 2014
Browse: Bahamas · Agusta 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.
