What happened
On August 1, 2004, a Bell 205 A-1 helicopter, registration EC-GAS, was engaged in aerial firefighting operations near Cortes de la Frontera, Málaga. While performing a water refilling maneuver over the Guadiaro River, the pilot attempted to position the aircraft to facilitate suction from the riverbed. Due to the shallow depth of the river, the suction hose had to be placed horizontally along the riverbed, requiring the pilot to descend approximately one meter lower than the standard hovering altitude.
After approximately 15 to 20 seconds of refilling, the pilot reported an impact involving the tail rotor. This impact caused the aircraft to yaw sharply to the right and the nose to pitch up significantly. The pilot responded by applying forward cyclic and reducing power. The helicopter completed a 270-degree right-hand turn before coming to rest on the riverbank, with the tail rotor submerged in the river and the main fuselage on the bank.
There were no fatalities among the crew, though the aircraft sustained major damage, including the severance of the tail rotor blades and the failure of the tail rotor drive shaft due to torsion.
The investigation
The investigation focused on the cause of the tail rotor strike and the pilot's handling of the aircraft during the low-altitude hover. Investigators examined the physical evidence of the aircraft damage and the pilot's flight history. The investigation analyzed the mechanics of the water refilling process, noting that the pilot had to manage power, lateral positioning, and anti-torque controls simultaneously while maintaining visual references near the water and the riverbank.
Findings
- The tail rotor strike was likely caused by the aircraft making contact with the vegetated riverbank.
- This contact was attributed to inadequate lateral control (anti-torque management) or a vertical movement that caused the tail to dip into the river.
- The pilot had not flown this specific aircraft model recently; the only prior experience with the Bell 205 A-1 on that day consisted of a single hour of supervised training involving three takeoffs and landings.
- A lack of recent familiarity with the aircraft type was identified as a contributing factor to the incident.