Synopsis
On 13 June 2009 at 15:35 UTC, a Bell 206 B3 helicopter, registration CS-HFB, operated by INAER - HELISUL, crashed in the Serra da Estrela mountain range near Lagoa Comprida, Portugal. The helicopter was conducting an aerial photography flight for a car advertisement. All three occupants – the pilot, a camera operator, and a director – sustained serious injuries, and the aircraft suffered substantial damage.
Accident Narrative
The helicopter had been chartered by a German film crew to shoot a commercial. The crew had conducted filming sessions during the morning and continued in the afternoon along a road between Loriga and Seia, near Lagoa Comprida. The director sat in the front left seat, the camera operator sat behind the pilot on the right side, and the pilot flew to intercept the vehicles for optimal footage.
During the third and final session, the helicopter was following the first of two cars at an altitude of approximately 150 feet above ground (about 5000 feet AMSL) at 35 knots. At 15:35, filming with the first car concluded, and the pilot was instructed to approach the second car. The pilot initiated a right turn by applying cyclic and right pedal input. The helicopter immediately began a right spin that could not be countered with full left pedal. The aircraft completed four full 360° rotations before impacting the terrain violently a few meters below.
After impact, the pilot could not shut down the engine via the normal throttle and used the fuel shutoff valve. He then contacted the company and emergency services. Rescue services provided on-site assistance, and the occupants were transported to hospitals in Covilhã (pilot), Viseu (director), and Coimbra (camera operator). The director was later transferred to Coimbra University Hospital due to the severity of his injuries.
Injuries and Damage
All three occupants suffered serious injuries, including spinal, thoracic, and lower limb trauma requiring hospitalization and multiple surgeries. The aircraft sustained substantial damage: the lower cabin was crushed, the tail boom fractured near the fuselage, the tail rotor and stabilizer were deformed, the skids were destroyed, the windscreens were broken, the main transmission support No. 5 fractured, and the main rotor mast tilted forward. No third-party damage occurred.
Aircraft Information
The Bell 206 B3 is a single-engine helicopter with skid landing gear, a two-blade main rotor rotating counter-clockwise, and a two-blade tail rotor on the left side. The aircraft, CS-HFB, had valid certificates and maintenance records with no reported anomalies.
The pilot, a 37-year-old Spanish male, held an ATPL(H) with qualifications on multiple types including the Bell 206. He had 3047:55 total flight hours, with 500 hours on type. The camera operator, a 43-year-old German male, was seated behind the pilot using a specialized camera mount; the rear right door and seat had been removed. The director, a 42-year-old German male, occupied the front left seat where flight controls (except pedals) had been removed for safety; the pedals were disconnected and served only as footrests.
Probable Cause
The investigation determined the primary cause of the accident was a loss of control due to an unexpected right rotation resulting from a loss of tail rotor effectiveness during a low-speed right turn in a tailwind condition. No contributing factors were identified.