Circumstances
The helicopter, based at Dégrad des Cannes near Cayenne, was tasked with external load transport in the Camopi region where refueling was unavailable. It departed with 351 liters of fuel (65% capacity). The initial mission was planned for 1 hour 29 minutes, with a fuel offload of 265 liters based on a consumption rate of 3 liters per minute including a 60-liter (20-minute) reserve.
Upon arrival at Camopi, the pilot accepted an additional rotation to transport two drums of diesel fuel to refuel a mechanical shovel in the forest. This extra flight lasted 23 minutes. During the return to Camopi, the low fuel level warning light illuminated approximately four minutes before landing.
The pilot estimated the remaining fuel sufficient to reach Crique Eaux Claires, a 17-minute flight. He departed again with another external load. En route, doubting the fuel state, he released the load and continued. During a significant nose-up attitude change, the engine stopped. The pilot initiated an autorotation over the forest, flaring the aircraft at the last moment to allow the tail boom to contact the canopy before the cabin. The helicopter crashed and came to rest on its right side.
Wreckage and Site Examination
The aircraft came down in dense virgin forest; the rotor cut a circular clearing. The airframe was destroyed. The tail boom remained attached and roughly straight. Main rotor blades were intact and attached to the rotor head. The engine was intact with no apparent anomalies. The fuel tank was not perforated and contained only a few liters of fuel.
Additional Information
Autorotation Technique
The pilot was aware of a previous accident involving an engine failure in a helicopter where the pilot died after the forward cabin struck the ground. Recalling this, he attempted to cushion the impact by adopting an extreme nose-up attitude to land on the tail boom. He sustained a head injury and a broken ankle.
Flight Manual and Procedures
The amber FUEL warning light indicates low fuel level (below 60 liters). The flight manual notes approximately 25 minutes of flight remain. The recommended pilot action is to "avoid significant attitude changes." The special operations manual provided no additional details on this subject.
Analysis
Fuel Management
The initial fuel plan allowed for a 25-liter (about 8 minutes) buffer beyond the 60-liter reserve. Actual flight times exceeded plans by 2-3 minutes on the first three legs, and the additional rotation consumed the buffer. After the extra rotation, only 45 liters remained (about 15 minutes). The fuel warning light confirmed this. Accepting the additional mission without recalculating fuel resulted in the helicopter being stranded at Camopi, which lacked fuel. A refueling stop at Crique Eaux Claires would have been necessary.
Piloting
The fuel starvation occurred following a large attitude change, contrary to the flight manual caution. The pilot's knowledge of a previous accident and his decision to flare aggressively may have mitigated the crash forces, though he was injured.