Colorado Heliops Accident

[500F]

I am more than a little confused by your response to my post. You said, and I'll quote, "That is why we fly helicopters." Can you help me understand what you mean by this statement? We are talking about a crash, that, if analyzed through the numerous video evidence of the event, appears to have been caused by pilot error; barring any unknown mechanical problems. I would be very surprised if they found a mechanical issue with the helicopter in this case, quite frankly.

 

Your statement, "In this situation 60 knots of airspeed would only have made things worse." If he would have had 60 knots of forward airspeed, we would not be having this conversation. He would have been in forward flight, well above ETL, and would not gotten into what appears to be a "Low Rotor RPM" condition which may have been induced by what appears on the video to be a left pedal turn while in an OGE Hover. I have heard reports of 20 knot winds that day as well.

 

Your analogy comparing this accident to what happens in VR work falls way short. It is apples and oranges. The pilot was not doing VR work so I am not sure where you think the comparison is here. You answered the real question in the end though by stating, "That is why we do pre-flights and power checks" Did the pilot do a power check before attempting the OGE Hover in the area where he ultimately crashed? I don't know. I was taught to try a OGE Hover at the altitude or slightly higher just to see if the aircraft can perform the maneuver before you get close to people and objects near the work site or LZ. Of course, consulting the performance charts in the RFM should also be done in the pre-flight planning stage especially if you know the altitude, temperature, and load that will be in the helicopter during the mission. You can bet the FAA/NTSB is going to be looking at all those things during it's investigation.

 

Your "inherent risk" argument in this case does not work. Yes, there are risks involved in any flight. Our job as professional pilots is to minimize the risks involved by knowing the limitations of the aircraft we are flying and not exceeding them. Sometimes, after doing the math in the safety of the hangar, or flying enroute to a mission, you actually have to tell someone "No, we can't do that." It is not always the popular answer that a client wants to hear but you as PIC are ultimately responsible, not them. The ingredients for this crash were all put together by the pilot involved and unfortunately he may suffer a suspension of his license because of it. As we all know it is rare that people "walk away" from a helicopter crash and in this case the occupants were very lucky indeed.

 

This video is the best so far in showing the OGE Hover and what appears to be a left pedal turn just before the helicopter begins to sink due to a likely "Low Rotor RPM" condition:

 

 

 

Your initial post said "Seems like somebody ought to have known better that is all."

Which led me to believe you felt the pilot should have known beter than to be in an OGE hover Within the HV curve. I see now you may have been talking about low rotor. If thats the case I apologize.

 

I said thats why whe fly helicopters. Meaning so that we can hover. I hate it when people call a pilot reckless for hovering within the HV curve. That is why these machines were invented. Everything you can do outside of the curve is better suited to an airplane.

 

"If he would have had 60 knots of forward airspeed, we would not be having this conversation." possibly, but thats an assumption. It could have also been a partial power loss.

 

"Your "inherent risk" argument in this case does not work. Yes, there are risks involved in any flight. Our job as professional pilots is to minimize the risks involved by knowing the limitations of the aircraft we are flying and not exceeding them."

 

Very True in some cases. But again that would only apply in this case if your opinion (which is based on the assumption that he was exceeding the limitations of his aircraft)turns out to be correct. I do not know to be the case. And I'll continue to give the guy the benefit of the doubt until I hear otherwise.

[RkyMtnHI]

"Glad everyone is okay. My heart goes out to the pilot, he/she will probably have a lifetime of self recrimination caused by one simple mistake. Take solace in the fact that your actions saved the lives of two passengers. Keep your head up, live and learn, try and move on, these things CAN AND DO happen to the best of us. Professionals can still make mistakes and be professionals afterwords; just ask a weatherman."

 

 

Thanks for that, I would ask that you all remember that this pilot is a great guy and is going thru some tough times right now.. and it truly could happen to any of us (pilots).

 

First I’d like to give a sincere thanks to all that have contacted us with support, I am surprised how many out there have gone thru similar situations and are willing to talk about them with our team… those are the folks that honestly do make a difference in our industry.

 

I can’t say a lot but will give you info as I can, the incident is still under investigation, and no, of course the NTSB & FAA have not ‘ruled’ on anything yet, in fact, at this time the NTSB has not even seen the helicopter.

 

There were three people in the helicopter. One CFII and one Private up-front, a photog in the back. No student was flying the helicopter; the II has over 1700 hours and is a great pilot. The winds were slight, I would estimate around 4 to 5 kts, I live close to the mountain and was onsite very quickly.

 

This was posted to our FB page and I really appreciate it:

 

"Bad things happen to good companies all of the time. Those that utilize integrity and accountability to deal with these situations are the ones to go on to become great companies!"

 

We really do care; about our students, our team, and the industry, and if you knew us you would already know that. If you have any questions about any issue you can always call me at Heli-Ops.

 

Sincerely,

 

dp

[ADRidge]

Remember to let your pilot know that we all expose ourselves to that risk. I think I read a statistic years ago that said the average career heli pilot will have two or three emergencies. It's why we train. Regardless of anything else that may have happened, he did a damn good job keeping that helicopter away from the crowd, and he needs to be proud of that.

 

The most important thing after an accident is to get back to flying as soon as possible. Too much time to sit and think is the worst thing you can do to yourself after something traumatic. Keep moving, stare that fear down and move on.

 

My thoughts are with you guys.

[beckwith]

First glad to hear everyone was un-hurt.

 

Lelebebbel, Golden is about 5,700' and lookout mtn goes up to just under 8,000 the lariat trial or lookout mtn road runs right up the front of it. it was fairly warm on Sunday, here is the golden weather <http://www.wunderground.com/weatherstation/WXDailyHistory.asp?ID=KCOGOLDE25>

I grew up there rock climbing, running, and biking on that road and the surrounding trails, there are a lot of deep gullies and sharp ridge lines running vertical up the east face(where the road is), the north-east side has a series of cliff bands, and to the south it is wooded. The area is a favorite for hang-gliders and para-sailors it was not uncommon to see them up a thousand or so over the summit.

 

I'm not going to draw any conclusion about the helicopter here. I'll leave that other more experienced pilots, but I hope the summery of the conditions and terrain helps.

[rick1128]

I can’t say a lot but will give you info as I can, the incident is still under investigation, and no, of course the NTSB & FAA have not ‘ruled’ on anything yet, in fact, at this time the NTSB has not even seen the helicopter.

 

Dennis,

 

Glad everyone is alright. The NTSB will most likely never see the helicopter. From my experience, the NTSB generally leaves the GA accidents to the FAA to investigate. On average there are around 2000 aviation accidents a year in the US. And with the NTSB also responsible for not only aviation, but also highway, marine, rail and pipeline events and with the few investigators they have, they will generally leave GA accidents to the FAA unless it becomes political like a famous person on board, etc. The most you will hear from the NTSB is a phone call and maybe a form you have to fill out.

 

The pilot might expect to get a letter from the FSDO to do a 709 ride. It's not a big deal, if you have a good relationship with the FSDO it can be a non-event. In the event of an accident they can and many times do have the pilot take a 709 ride. I would suggest that he does brush up prior to that ride and get plenty of rest before the ride.

 

As for the helicopter, I would tell him the same thing I told a good friend that dumped a S76 in the GOM, Uncle Frank will make you a new one.

[edspilot]

Dennis:

 

Most of what I would say to you has already been said. Most importantly no deaths or injuries!

 

Please tell your pilot for us, that life goes on and we are here with him to assist in any way we can. Just let us know what we can do.

 

Your company will survive, because of the employees and leadership. Knowing you, as I do, you have the "leadership" covered and I'm sure you only have great employees.

 

Remind all of your employees to keep their heads held high, act the professionals they are, and things will improve. Better days are ahead for your pilot and Colorado HeliOps.

 

Our best,

 

Dean

edspilot

[The Guardian]

Accidents like these are also a reminder how perilous it can be owning and running a small business. Hopefully they'll be able to get another R44 in there even temporarily to cover what can potentially be a large loss of revenue while things get sorted out. Things can be tough when a small business relies on only a few major or key assets and something bad happens. Speaking from experience it's always nice to grow out of challenges like these and be stronger because of it and I'm sure HeliOps will come out on top.

Edited May 11, 2011 by The Guardian

[beckwith]

Factual is out from the NTSB.

 

NTSB

[HELI-TEK1]

just a little curious. I was under the impression that the aircraft is usually impounded by the FAA until things get investigated a little bit more? I was in an accident a few years back and the FAA immediatly released the aircraft to the company i was flying with(they were also close friends with the local FAA "representative" if you will.)I could of posted this as a new topic as i am not trying to stir anything else up but figured someone reading this may know. Very glad everyone was ok.

[500F]

When you contact the NTSB they decide whether to investigate. If there are no injureis, and minimal damage, (A tail rotor strike for example) they ofthen wont investigate and will release the aircraft verbally, often there is never anything filed on the NTSB website. Sometimes they do in investigation over the phone an just put up a one line statement "Aircraft rolled over during practice auto, no injuries" or something to that effect. If there are serious or fatal injuries or alleged parts failures they normally dispatch an NTSB investigator and Impound the aircraft till they are done. Usually at that point it does not matter because the hull belongs to the insurance company if a claim is filed & accepted. The FAA participates in the invistigations mostly looking for regulatory violations, not causation.

[aeroscout]

I'm glad everyone was okay. I just dread that the PIC will get hung out to dry.

[Goldy]

Remember to let your pilot know that we all expose ourselves to that risk. I think I read a statistic years ago that said the average career heli pilot will have two or three emergencies. It's why we train. Regardless of anything else that may have happened, he did a damn good job keeping that helicopter away from the crowd, and he needs to be proud of that.

 

The most important thing after an accident is to get back to flying as soon as possible. Too much time to sit and think is the worst thing you can do to yourself after something traumatic. Keep moving, stare that fear down and move on.

 

My thoughts are with you guys.

Since this thread has been brought back, I just wanted to remind anyone that didn't know Ridge....that he was killed in a wire strike accident some years ago. Not long after he made this post. May we all re-devote ourselves to flying safe...