SERS · Aerospatiale SA365-N1 · 2000-12-18 · West Mifflin, PA, USA
Event
NTSB number
NYC01LA059
Event ID
20010105X00048
Type
Accident
Date
2000-12-18
Location
West Mifflin, PA, USA
Coordinates
40.354167, -79.925003
Injuries
Highest injury
SERS
Fatal
0
Serious
2
Minor
0
Uninjured
1
Total aboard
3
Aircraft
Make
Aerospatiale
Model
SA365-N1
Registration
N89SM
FAR Part
091
Engines
2
Damage
DEST
Conditions
Light
DAYL
Weather
VMC
Probable cause
Insufficient lubrication within the tail rotor gearbox, which resulted in the seizure of the duplex ball bearing and a fixed pitch setting of the tail rotor. Also causal, was the pilot's loss of control, which was the result of a relative low speed/high power combination during a go-around attempt. A factor was the manufacturer's lack of procedures for fixed tail rotor pitch settings.