2002 Tarnos Eurocopter AS350 Accident

Overview and Flight Context On 26 March 2002, a Eurocopter AS350 Ecureuil helicopter, registered F-WVKI, was destroyed in an accident at the Turboméca facility in Tarnos, France. The aircraft was operated by Compagnie Générale des Turbo-Machines (CGTM) and was being used for a demonstration flight. The flight was part of an internal company event organized by Turboméca to celebrate the production of its 5,000th ARRIEL engine. The event was originally planned to include helicopters from the Sécurité Civile and Gendarmerie Nationale, but their participation was cancelled, leading to CGTM being asked to provide a replacement demonstration. ## Accident Sequence The helicopter took off from the helipad at the Tarnos plant at approximately 16:20 UTC with the pilot and five passengers on board. After about five minutes of flight, the aircraft returned toward the helipad and the pilot performed a series of aerobatic maneuvers. During the final maneuver, the pilot partially lost control of the helicopter. The main rotor blades struck the front of an unoccupied industrial building, and the aircraft crashed onto its roof. ## Casualties and Damage The accident resulted in two fatalities: the pilot and one passenger. Four passengers sustained serious injuries. The helicopter was destroyed, and the roof and facade of building number 16 were damaged. No other persons were injured. ## Aircraft and Pilot Information The F-WVKI was a single-turbine AS350 helicopter built in 1975 by Société Aérospatiale, with serial number 002. It was used as a flying test bed and had accumulated 801.8 flight hours and 7,688 cycles. The pilot was a 40-year-old experimental helicopter test pilot employed by CGTM since 1999. He held a helicopter test pilot certificate issued by the CEV of Brétigny in 1990, with a valid test license until 30 April 2002. He had 4,161 total flight hours, including 153 hours on the AS350 since 1999 and 33 hours on the F-WVKI.