Individually Owned: 150,657
Corporate Owned: 137,281
Aircraft Accident/Incident Report
New Port Richey, Florida 34654
Thursday, January 2, 2003 19:51 EST
NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident
The pilot stated that after takeoff while in a left turn climbing through 600 feet at 60 knots indicated airspeed, he heard a loss of engine power. He stopped the turn and noted that the engine was at flight idle as indicated by the dual tachometer. He verified the throttle was full open, and maneuvered the helicopter towards an open area. He bled off main rotor rpm to clear obstacles that were ahead, and decelerated at 10 feet above ground level. The helicopter touched down with little forward movement, coming to rest upright with the skids and tailboom separated. The helicopter was found to contain a sufficient quantity of fuel to sustain engine operation; no contaminants were reported. Examination of the engine revealed the fuel inlet line "B" nut was found loose by 2 1/2 flats at the fuel inlet nozzle. The fuel inlet line was drained and found to contain approximately 1 teaspoon of fuel while the fuel filter was full of fuel. The engine control rigging was found to be in limits. An abnormal sound was heard during testing of the aircraft fuel shutoff valve. Operational testing of the valve revealed it was operational but rotation of the valve body occurred with rotation of the valve. The engine was removed from the helicopter and transported to the manufacturer's facility. Prior to the engine run, the bleed air valve was found failed in the closed position; the internal spring was found unwound. The engine was operated in the presence of an FAA airworthiness inspector with a new bleed valve and the accident bleed valve installed; no appreciable difference was noted with respect to starting temperature, acceleration times, or stabilized operation. A customer bleed line that attaches to the scroll was found loose, it was tightened followed by engine operation. The line was loose when checked following the engine run. No significant findings were noted during the engine runs. Safety concerns prevented operation of the engine with the as-found position of the loose "B" nut at the fuel nozzle; however, a valve was installed to divert fuel from the fuel nozzle simulating the as-found position of the loose "B" nut. During the engine run, the valve was opened 1/4 and the engine operated normally. The valve was opened to 1/2 then 3/4, the engine continued to operate normally though the fuel flow increased. The valve was then fully opened and the engine flamed out. Several hours before the accident, a mechanic performed a compressor wash. It was common practice for the mechanic to clean the fuel nozzle when he performed a compressor wash.
NTSB Probable Cause Narrative
The pilot's inadequate preflight of the helicopter following maintenance he observed, and failure of maintenance personnel to tighten the "B" nut at the fuel nozzle following a compressor wash resulting in the total loss of engine power. Also, the pilot's intentional decay of main rotor rpm while attempting to clear obstructions and unsuitable terrain encountered during the forced landing resulting in a hard landing.
Event Information
| Type of Event | Accident |
| Event Date | 1/2/2003 |
| Event Day of the Week | Thursday |
| Time of Event | 1951 |
| Event Time Zone | Eastern Standard Time |
| Event City | New Port Richey |
| Event State | FLORIDA |
| Event Country | -- |
| Zipcode of the event site | 34654 |
| Event Date Year | 2003 |
| Event Date Month | 1 |
| MidAir Collision Indicator | No |
| On Ground Collision occurred ? | No |
| Event Location Latitude | 281629N |
| Event Location Longitude | 0823756W |
| Event Location Airport | -- |
| Event Location Nearest Airport ID | -- |
| Indicates whether the acc/inc occurred off or on an airport | Off Airport/Airstrip |
| Distance from airport in statute miles | -- |
| Degrees magnetic from airport | -- |
| Airport Elevation | -- |
| Weather Briefing Completeness | Unknown |
| Investigator's weather source | Weather Observation Facility |
| Time of the weather observation | 1953 Eastern Standard Time |
| Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) | -- |
| Weather Observation Facility ID | KTPA |
| Elevation of weather observation facility | 26 |
| Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) | -- |
| Time Zone of the weather observation | EST |
| Lighting Conditions | Night/Dark |
| Lowest Ceiling Height | 25000 |
| Lowest Non-Ceiling Height | 3000 |
| Sky/Lowest/Cloud Conditions | Few |
| Sky Condition for Lowest Ceiling | Overcast |
| Visibility Runway Visual Range (Feet) | -- |
| Visibility Runway Visual Value (Statute Miles) | -- |
| Visibility (Statute Miles) | 10 |
| Air Temperature at event time (in degrees celsius) | 18 |
| Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) | 17 |
| Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) | 190 |
| Variable Wind Indicator | Wind direction could be determined |
| Wind Speed (knots) | 4 |
| Wind Velocity Indicator | -- |
| Wind Gust Indicator | Not Gusting |
| Wind Gust (knots) | -- |
| Altimeter Setting at event time (in. Hg) | 29.99 |
| Density Altitude (feet) | -- |
| Intensity of Precipitation | -- |
| METAR weather report | -- |
| Event Highest Injury | None |
| On Ground, Fatal Injuries | -- |
| On Ground, Minor Injuries | -- |
| On Ground, Serious Injuries | -- |
| Injury Total Fatal | -- |
| Injury Total Minor | -- |
| Injury Total None | 2 |
| Injury Total Serious | -- |
| Injury Total All | -- |
| Investigating Agency | NTSB |
| NTSB Docket Number (internal use) | 15359 |
| NTSB Notification Source | FAA Comm Center |
| NTSB Notification Date | Jan 2 2003 12:00AM |
| NTSB Notification Time | 2059 |
| Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information | DMS |
| Date of most recent change to record | Apr 28 2004 3:34PM |
| User who most recently changed record | NTSB\MONR |
| Basic weather conditions | Visual Meteorological Cond |
| FAA District Office | Tampa, Florida |
Aircraft Involved |
|
|---|---|
Aircraft #1 |
|
| Aircraft Registration Number | N317LC |
| NTSB Number | MIA03TA036 |
| Missing Aircraft Indicator | -- |
| Federal Aviation Reg. Part | Public Use |
| Type of Flight Plan filed | None |
| Flight plan Was Activated? | No |
| Damage | Substantial |
| Aircraft Fire | None |
| Aircraft Explosion | None |
| Aircraft Manufacturer's Full Name | Hughes |
| Aircraft Model | OH-6 |
| Aircraft Series Identifier | -- |
| Aircraft Serial Number | 68-17310 |
| Certified Max Gross Weight | 2550 |
| Aircraft Category | Helicopter |
| Aircraft Registration Class | U.S. Registered/U.S. Soil |
| Aircraft is a homebuilt? | No |
| Flight Crew Seats | -- |
| Cabin Crew Seats | -- |
| Passenger Seats | -- |
| Total number of seats on the aircraft | 4 |
| Number of Engines | 1 |
| Fixed gear or retractable gear | Fixed |
| Aircraft, Type of Last Inspection | 100 Hour |
| Date of Last Inspection | Oct 29 2002 12:00AM |
| Airframe hours since last inspection | 49.8 |
| Airframe Hours | 5649.3 |
| ELT Installed | Yes |
| ELT Activated | Yes |
| ELT Aided Location of Event Site | No |
| ELT Type | -- |
| Aircraft Owner Name | Pasco County Sheriff's Office |
| Aircraft Owner Street Address | 8903 Airway Blvd. |
| Aircraft Owner City | New Port Richey |
| Aircraft Owner State | FL |
| Aircraft Owner Country | USA |
| Aircraft Owner Zipcode | 34654 |
| Operator is an individual? | No |
| Operator Name | -- |
| Operator Same as Owner? | Yes |
| Operator Is Doing Business As | -- |
| Operator Address Same as Owner? | Yes |
| Operator Street Address | -- |
| Operator City | -- |
| Operator State | -- |
| Operator Country | -- |
| Operator Zip code | -- |
| Operator Code | -- |
| Owner has at least one certificate | None |
| Other Operator of large aircraft? | -- |
| Certified for Part 133 or 137 Operation | -- |
| Operator Certificate Number | -- |
| Indicates whether an air carrier operation was scheduled or not | -- |
| Indicates Domestic or International Flight | -- |
| Operator carrying Pax/Cargo/Mail | -- |
| Type of Flying (Per_Bus / Primary) | Public Use |
| Second Pilot on Board | No |
| Departure Point Same as Event | Yes |
| Departure Airport Code | FA40 |
| Departure City | New Port Richey |
| Departure State | FL |
| Departure Country | USA |
| Departure Time | 1945 |
| Departure Time Zone | EST |
| Destination Same as Local Flt | dest & departure same, accident can occur anywhere |
| Destination Airport Code | FA40 |
| Destination City | New Port Richey |
| Destination State | FL |
| Destination Country | USA |
| Specific Phase of Flight | Emergency descent/landing |
| Report sent to ICAO? | No |
| Evacuation occurred | Yes |
| Date of most recent change to record | Mar 5 2004 2:23PM |
| User who most recently changed record | KENJ |
| Since inspection or accident | Time of Accident |
| Event Location Runway Number and Location | -- |
| Runway Length | -- |
| Runway Width | -- |
| Sight Seeing flight | No |
| Air Medical Flight | No |
| Medical Flight | -- |