Columbia Helicopters CH-47D accident near North Fork, ID
On July 21, 2022, a Columbia Helicopters CH-47D (helicopter) was involved in an accident near North Fork, ID. 2 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- July 21, 2022
- Place
- North Fork, ID
- Aircraft
- Columbia Helicopters CH-47D · Helicopter
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 45.400°N, 114.167°W
- NTSB ID
- 20220722105544
Official records · CEN22FA331
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn July 21, 2022, about 1642 mountain daylight time, a Columbia Helicopters CH-47D, N388RA, was destroyed when it was involved in an accident near North Fork, Idaho. The pilot and copilot were fatally injured. The helicopter was operated as a public aircraft. The helicopter operator was contracted by the United States Forest Service (USFS) for firefighting operations related to the Moose fire. The helicopter was relocated to the area two days before the accident and began firefighting flights the day before the accident. The helicopter was equipped with a 2,600-gallon water bucket attached to the helicopter’s belly-mounted cargo hook via a 200-ft long line. On the day of the accident, the pilots had flown about 1.5 flight hours and dropped multiple bucket loads. A 38-second video of the accident flight recorded by a local resident showed the helicopter setting up to dip the water bucket into the Salmon River. At the start of the video, the helicopter was hovering about 200 ft above ground level (agl) over the river with its empty water bucket, at the end of the long line, swinging close to the surface of the river. (See figure 1.) The helicopter then climbed to about 325 ft agl over a period of 8 to 9 seconds; its heading remained generally the same throughout the ascent. Next, the helicopter began to yaw to the left, and once it had turned about 180°, the helicopter suddenly pitched down, continued to yaw left, and descended. The left yaw continued through the descent until the helicopter impacted the river and riverbank. Figure 1. This still image from th
Probable cause
The failure of the flight crew to properly secure a company-issued iPad, leading to its migration into and jamming of the copilot’s left pedal, preventing the pilot from arresting a left yaw, and resulting in a loss of control.
More accidents in ID
- Boeing 737, Jan 9, 2021
- Cessna TU206, Jul 5, 2020
- Mitsubishi MU-2B-36, Jan 15, 1996
- Cessna T303, Mar 3, 1998
- Cessna TU-206-G, Jul 3, 1988
Browse: Idaho
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
