Kaman Aerospace Corporation K-1200 accident near Silver Jack Reservoir, CO
On July 12, 2026, a Kaman Aerospace Corporation K-1200 (helicopter) was involved in an accident near Silver Jack Reservoir, CO. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- July 12, 2026
- Place
- Silver Jack Reservoir, CO
- Aircraft
- Kaman Aerospace Corporation K-1200 · Helicopter
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 38.221°N, 107.534°W
- NTSB ID
- 20260713203375
NTSB summary
On July 12, 2026, about 1705 mountain daylight time, a Kaman Aerospace Corporation K-1200 (K-MAX) helicopter, N40HX, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident at Silver Jack Reservoir, Colorado. The pilot was fatally injured. The helicopter was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 133 external load firefighting flight. The helicopter was operated under a call-when-needed contract with the United States Forest Service (USFS) and was conducting water bucket/fire suppression flight for the Gold Mountain Fire in the Uncompahgre Wilderness of the north-central region of the San Juan Mountains in Colorado. The firefighting helicopter was equipped with a 660-gallon Bambi MAX Bucket with PowerFill Max (water bucket) suspended from the helicopter by a 150 ft long line. The helicopter was equipped with an Appareo AIRS-400 airborne image recording system that recorded video, ambient audio, and flight parameter data during the flight. The recovered device was examined at the NTSB Vehicle Recorder Laboratory, Washington, DC. According to recovered flight parameter data, at 1607:41, the helicopter lifted into a hover at a remote helibase near Ouray, Colorado. At 1608:17, the helicopter’s ground speed and altitude began to increase, consistent with the helicopter departing the helibase. The helicopter initially flew north-northwest along Hwy 550 toward Ridgway, Colorado, before it turned northeast and flew to the north end of Silver Jack Reservoir. The helicopter made a descending right 270° turn on the east side of reservoir. The helicopter th
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Browse: Colorado
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
