| Crash location | 62.766667°N, 148.583333°W
Reported location is a long distance from the NTSB's reported nearest city. This often means that the location has a typo, or is incorrect. |
| Nearest city | Talkeetna, AK
62.323889°N, 150.109444°W 57.4 miles away |
| Tail number | N178CH |
|---|---|
| Accident date | 31 Aug 2012 |
| Aircraft type | Aerospatiale AS350 B2 |
| Additional details: | None |
The pilot landed a high skid, turbine-powered helicopter at a remote construction site, which contained several bags of cement that were covered by a plastic tarp. The plastic tarp was secured by a nylon strap that was wrapped around the bags. The pilot reported that after landing near the bags of cement, he retarded the engine throttle to flight idle to begin the mandatory 2-minute engine cool down procedure. During the engine cool down the pilot felt an abrupt airframe vibration, so he immediately closed the engine throttle, and did an emergency engine shutdown. A postflight inspection revealed that the plastic tarp had dislodged from the nylon strap, and it subsequently became entangled in the tail rotor hub and blade assembly. As a result, the helicopter sustained substantial damage to the tail rotor drive system and tail boom. The pilot said there were no preaccident mechanical problems with the helicopter.
The entanglement of a plastic tarp in the helicopter’s tail rotor after becoming dislodged from its securement.