No fatalities

Helicopter Sustains Tail-Boom Damage During Off-Airport Landing

Santa Rosa, AZ, United States

On December 6, 2017, an EUROCOPTER AS 350 operated by US DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY was involved in an aviation accident near Santa Rosa, AZ. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The pilot’s improper landing flare, which resulted in a hard landing. This summary draws on records from NTSB; 16 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.

SourcesNTSBPrimary reportUpdated 1785761257Data APIEditorial standards

The pilot reported a slightly harder than normal landing during an off-airport operation. A post-accident examination revealed substantial damage to the tail-boom. No preaccident mechanical failures were identified.

Incident Summary

A helicopter experienced a landing event while operating off-airport. The pilot reported that the touch-down was slightly harder than typical. Following the landing, the helicopter was flown back to the airport without any further issues.

Pilot Report

According to the pilot, the landing was slightly harder than normal. No preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions were noted that would have prevented normal operation. The pilot did not indicate any other anomalies during the flight.

Post-Accident Examination

An examination conducted after the incident found that the helicopter had incurred substantial damage to the tail-boom. The specific extent of the damage was not further detailed, but it was classified as substantial. The examination did not reveal any preexisting mechanical issues that could have contributed to the harder landing.

Conclusion

The event involved an off-airport landing that was harder than usual, resulting in damage to the tail-boom. The helicopter was subsequently flown back to its home airport without additional incident. No mechanical failures were reported prior to the event.

Contributing factors

Landing flare — Not attained/maintainedPilot