Accident Overview
On September 17, 2017, at approximately 0700 Pacific daylight time, a Bell 47G-5 helicopter, registration N3285T, was substantially damaged in an accident near Salinas, California. The pilot received minor injuries. The helicopter was being operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 137 aerial application flight.
Pilot Report
According to the pilot, the accident occurred during his first application pass on the second field of the day. After loading the helicopter with chemicals near the field, he departed and flew around a large power transmission line tower located east of the field. He intended to fly the first pass from the northeast side and spray the middle of the field, heading southwest. The pilot reported looking for vehicle traffic along the edge of the field before crossing under smaller power lines supported by 40-foot power poles that ran parallel to the road. At that point, the helicopter impacted a wire and subsequently struck terrain. The pilot did not recall seeing the wire on the 40-foot poles before the accident. He further stated that he had been spraying this field for the previous 20 years and that weather was not a factor on the morning of the accident.
Examination
Examination of the helicopter by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector revealed that the main rotor assembly had separated from the helicopter and the main rotor blades exhibited impact damage. Remnants of wire were found wrapped around the main rotor drive shaft. The examination showed no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation.
The large power transmission line towers extended from southwest to northeast, paralleling the southeast edge of the field. The 40-foot poles supported power, telephone, and cable lines and were oriented southeast to northwest, parallel to the northeast edge of the field. A wire was installed at a height of about 20 feet up the 40-foot poles for attaching a larger cable data line, which had not yet been installed on that section of wire at the time of the accident.