Pilot Does Not Recall Disengaging Autopilot, Flight Impacted
The Water
The NTSB has released a preliminary report on a Florida
incident involving a Medstar helicopter. Fortunately no one was
injured when the helicopter went down in the water off Captiva
Island.
NTSB Identification: ERA09LA464
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Monday, August 17, 2009 in North Captiva Island,
FL
Aircraft: EUROCOPTER DEUTSCHLAND GMBH EC-145, registration:
N911LZ
Injuries: 3 Uninjured.
This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may
contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when
the final report has been completed.
On August 17, 2009, at 0031 eastern daylight time, a Eurocopter
EC-145, N911LZ, operated by the Lee County Division of Public
Safety, as MedStar 1, was substantially damaged when it impacted
water near North Captiva Island, Florida. The pilot and two medical
crewmembers were not injured. Night visual meteorological
conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the flight
that originated at Page Field Airport (FMY), Fort Myers, Florida.
The positioning flight was conducted under the provisions of 14
Code of Federal Regulations Part 91.
According to the pilot, she received a call around midnight for
a patient pickup on North Captiva Island. After departure from FMY,
she flew west over the water, with the autopilot engaged (set on
altitude hold), at an altitude of 1,000 feet. The helicopter
remained at 1,000 feet to assure obstruction clearance (towers on
Pine Island). After passing over the towers, the pilot descended to
800 feet, using autopilot. At the same time, she was attempting to
contact the Captiva Fire Department (FD) on the radio. The pilot
reported she tried to call the FD 4 or 5 times with no response,
and then contacted Lee County Dispatch to confirm which frequency
the FD was using.
When the helicopter was approximately 3 minutes from landing,
the pilot selected 500 feet using the autopilot and the helicopter
initiated a descent to that altitude. She continued toward the
airfield and made a final transmission to the FD that she was "one
minute out."
The pilot commented to the medical crew that she could see the
FD moving fire trucks to the center of the landing zone (a grass
airstrip). She stated she wasn't concerned that she could not reach
the FD since she was landing on an airfield, and was familiar with
the obstructions in the landing zone.
The plot could not remember the exact sequence of the final
500-foot descent; however, at some point she remembered the medical
crew commenting they "couldn't see anything." She responded, that
the flight to Captiva is usually very dark over the water and
there's "never anything to see." She remembered turning on the
search light and shortly after, impacting the water. She also
stated she thought she "pulled power and cyclic" when she saw the
water; but didn't have time to warn the crew. After the helicopter
impacted the water, it flipped over and was submerged within
seconds.
The pilot and two paramedics were able to egress from the
helicopter and swim to the surface of the water. They climbed onto
the underside of the helicopter and waited for a FD boat to pick
them up.
The pilot had flown to North Captiva Island numerous times prior
to the accident flight. She reported that the "sight picture was
the same as previous flights;" however, the pilot did remember that
during the accident just prior to impact, she saw an amber altitude
alert on the primary flight display (signifying the autopilot was
disengaged). The pilot did not remember ever disconnecting the
autopilot during the flight, and knew she was "at the controls at
impact." The pilot additionally reported no mechanical problems
with the helicopter.
Both paramedics reported the flight was routine (with the
exception of being unable to contact the FD), until they were
within a few minutes of landing at North Captiva Island. At that
time, they commented that they "couldn't see anything" outside of
the helicopter. They observed what appeared to be rain outside the
helicopter; however, since they knew it was not raining at the
time, they thought this was the rotorwash from the water below. The
helicopter then immediately impacted the water, flipped over, and
the cabin filled with water within 5 seconds.
EC 145
A Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector examined the
helicopter after the accident. According to the inspector, flight
control continuity was established and no anomalies were noted with
the helicopter's engines.
The pilot held an airline transport pilot certificate with a
rating for rotorcraft-helicopter. She also held a commercial pilot
certificate with a rating for airplane single-engine land. The
pilot's most recent FAA second-class medical certificate was issued
on February 24, 2009. At that time, the pilot reported 5,800 hours
of total flight experience.