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March 1, 1983 · Aerospatiale AS-350D · N3593D
E. Cameron
Overview
Report Status
Preliminary report
Event Type
Incident
Date
March 1, 1983
Injury Outcomes
No injuries (4 uninjured)
Location
E. Cameron
Aircraft
Aerospatiale AS-350D
Tail Number
N3593D
Injuries
None
Aircraft Damage
Minor
NTSB Number
FTW83IA131
DURING AN APPROACH TO AN OIL DRILLING RIG PLATFORM, THE ENGINE DECELERATED AS THE PILOT STARTED TO ALL POWER. WITH THE ACFT BELOW THE LANDING AREA, HE MANEUVERED TO MISS THE PLATFORM & INITIATED AN AUTOROTATIVE LANDING. HE MADE A MAYDAY CALL & TRIED TO ELECTRICALLY DEPLOY THE EMERGENCY FLOATS; HOWEVER, THE RIGHT FLOAT FAILED TO INFLATE & THERE WAS INSUFFICIENT TIME FOR MANUAL DEPLOYMENT. IMMEDIATELY ON TOUCHDOWN, THE HELICOPTER ROLLED OVER & BEGAN TO FILL WITH WATER. REPORTEDLY, THERE WAS ONLY MINOR DAMAGE FROM WATER IMMERSION. NO PREIMPACT DISCREPANCIES WERE FOUND THAT WOULD HAVE CAUSED THE POWER LOSS. THE WIRES TO THE RIGHT FLOAT (FOR ELECTRICAL DEPLOYMENT) WERE WORN IN TWO AT A CENTER HEX HEAD SCREW. A FLEET INSPECTION OF 37 ACFT REVEALED THAT 60% WERE WORN THRU IN THE SAME AREA.
Full Narrative
DURING AN APPROACH TO AN OIL DRILLING RIG PLATFORM, THE ENGINE DECELERATED AS THE PILOT STARTED TO ALL POWER. WITH THE ACFT BELOW THE LANDING AREA, HE MANEUVERED TO MISS THE PLATFORM & INITIATED AN AUTOROTATIVE LANDING. HE MADE A MAYDAY CALL & TRIED TO ELECTRICALLY DEPLOY THE EMERGENCY FLOATS; HOWEVER, THE RIGHT FLOAT FAILED TO INFLATE & THERE WAS INSUFFICIENT TIME FOR MANUAL DEPLOYMENT. IMMEDIATELY ON TOUCHDOWN, THE HELICOPTER ROLLED OVER & BEGAN TO FILL WITH WATER. REPORTEDLY, THERE WAS ONLY MINOR DAMAGE FROM WATER IMMERSION. NO PREIMPACT DISCREPANCIES WERE FOUND THAT WOULD HAVE CAUSED THE POWER LOSS. THE WIRES TO THE RIGHT FLOAT (FOR ELECTRICAL DEPLOYMENT) WERE WORN IN TWO AT A CENTER HEX HEAD SCREW. A FLEET INSPECTION OF 37 ACFT REVEALED THAT 60% WERE WORN THRU IN THE SAME AREA.
Flight
Event TypeIncident
Event Time16:00 UTC
Nearest Airport0nm N
Runway0
Flight Plan FiledCvfr
Aircraft FireNo
Aircraft ExplosionNo
Aircraft
AircraftAerospatiale AS-350D
Tail NumberN3593D
Aircraft CategoryHeli
DamageMinor
Operating RulePart 135
Engines1
Engine TypeTurboshaft
Engine DetailsLycoming · LTS-101 · Turboshaft · 531
Seats6
People & Injuries
Injury SummaryNo injuries (4 uninjured)
Fatal0
Serious0
Minor0
Uninjured4
Total4
Crew 1Age 24 · Second Class
Conditions
ConditionsVMC
LightDaylight
Wind120° @ 10 kt
Visibility6 sm
CeilingNone
Temperature / Dew Point59 / 55
Altimeter30.00 inHg
Weather SourceWFAC