I just heard on the radio: a F & G helicopter crash a while back that took down all 3 crew members, seems to have been caused by an errant clipboard one of the biologists may have let loose of going into the rotor, geeez.....bad deal.

Yep sheet does happen. We had a 6 volt battle lantern take out 4 cars and a unspecified number of bushes and trees. It got wedged under the brake peddle going down a big hill.

G'Day

Most likely the clipbaord flew out of an open door into the tailrotor...not good. No loose items in the cabin while flying with the doors off!!! Did they say where the accident was??

Is this the accident that happened in Kamiah?

courierguy wrote:crash ..... seems to have been caused by an errant clipboard

That happened to an F4 out'a Zweibrucken, Germany while I was there. Something like copilot's clip/knee board jammed in stick on TO, did a slow loop & both ejected, F4 hit a stone church (not on Sun, luckily) and broke windows for several blocks. No fatalities, but that plane NEVER had radio prob's!!

Guy who used to work for me ejected fro an OV10 - pen or pencil jammed the flight controls. They were low, turning base to final and it just kept tightening the turn. They were lucky to be alive at that altitude. Secure ALL loose objects!

Best,
O-2

This happened real close to Clear Creek Int'l By SuperMaule. It was a very tragic deal especially for the folks of the small town where it landed.

This happened real close to Clear Creek Int'l By SuperMaule. It was a very tragic deal especially for the folks of the small town where it landed.

Hey Avid Flyer,
This helicopter accident happened in Kamiah Idaho almost two years ago. The pilot was a nice young man from Bozeman Montana. I gave him his last 135 check ride in Clarkston, Washington earlier that year. The helicopter was a Hiller with the Soloy turbine engine conversion. These helicopters have great visibility so the Fish & Game really like them.

There were three fatalities in this accident, and yes it is thought that a metal clipboard took out the tailrotor. The seating arrangement is three across and a female biologist was ridding on the right side next to the door. Apparently she was feeling sick and opened the door when the metal clipboard flew off her lap and into the tailrotor.

In accident investigations there is rarely such discernable piece of evidence or “smoking gun”. This was a very unfortunate accident with the loss of three lives. All good people!

What concerns me is that the State Fish & Game Department(s) are now considering utilizing unmanned drones to perform game and fish surveys. All backcountry pilots should be concerned about this option too. How would you like to be flying down a river with the sun in your eyes to then see a windshield full of unmanned drone? UG!

James

There's only two kinds of helicopters

littlewheelinback wrote:There's only two kinds of helicopters

Yup.... One that is in a museum and one I will never ride in.....

Stol wrote:

littlewheelinback wrote:There's only two kinds of helicopters

Yup.... One that is in a museum and one I will never ride in.....

You fly an experimental airplane, with a car engine, among some of the most rugged terrain in the states....and you won't fly in a helicopter?!?!?!



Airplane land, then stop...
Helicopters stop, then land.

HolY Cow!!,, unmanned fish and game things flying around in the woods? Somebody needs to bring the hammer down on these things! They are NOT unmanned , the person is just somewhere else than onboard.Probably a good idea in the battlefield sometimes but cops have them now and every single other Joe schmoe agency wants one,this is scary stuff to me.I'm no criminal but I still don't like it. .....That is a huge bummer ,by the way,if it actually was a clipboard that caused the accident. Run that one through your mind a few times......I wonder if the pilot even knew or saw the clipboard go......yuck

There was a Bell 47G3B1 that augered in years ago back in CO where I came from. It was a very narrow landing zone on the edge of a steep canyon wall, the pilot set one skid down on it in a hover to pick up 2 passengers. One climbed in, then the other climbed in and sat on the collective. Game over. Pilot and passengers survived as I remember.

They crash, just like everything else. I'd still give my left nut for a good Jet Ranger though.

NTSB report on Kamiah accident:

http://www.ntsb.gov/aviationquery/brief.aspx?ev_id=20100831X45241&key=1