Accident: 200050292 - Lost Balance And Fell From Power Line Structure

An apprentice power line worker was standing on the horizontal crossarm of a structure supporting an overhead power line. He unhooked his body belt from the upright, apparently to board a helicopter. As he stepped toward the helicopter, he lost his balance and fell about 15 meters to the ground. He was hospitalized for injuries sustained in the fall.

fall, fall protection, helicopter, elec utility work, utility pole, lost balance, crossarm

Accident: 170239990 - Pilot Killed In Helicopter Crash

Employee #1 was flying a Bell helicopter, model UH-1B, where his coworkers were engaged in logging operations. He was lifting a log that the hooker on the ground had attached to a line secured to the helicopter. The hooker, who was approximately 300 ft from the log, had radio contact with the pilot. The main rotor mast failed, causing the rotor assembly to fly away from the body of the helicopter. The helicopter and pilot then inverted and crashed to the ground. Employee #1 suffered multiple body fractures and severe head trauma, with massive brain damage. He was killed.

logging, equipment failure, head, rotor, aircraft propeller, helicopter, fracture, brain

Accident: 170614515 - Injured When Struck By Falling Tree Limb

On June 12, 1997, Employee #1, a hooker for a company that does helicopter logging, had just made a hook for the turn going out when he was struck by an falling tree limb, 11 in. in diameter by 16 ft long. He sustained serious injuries, for which he was hospitalized. The oak limb had been weakened by propeller vibrations from the Sirkorsy sky crane.

logging, helicopter, tree limb, struck by, falling object, vibrations, helicopter

Accident: 201170305 - Pilot Injured In Helicopter Crash

At approximately noon on May 14, 1997, Employee #1 was flying a helicopter used to transport employees and light equipment to the felling areas near a logging site around Truckee, CA. Near the end of the day, he started a trip out to the felling area to pick up the crew. On his way to the site, Employee #1 had decided to transport a 200 ft drop line to another landing site where it would be used by a different helicopter to haul logs out of the forest. The drop line, a combination of cable and electric cord, was suspended from the bottom of the helicopter to allow it to be released into the landing site as the aircraft flew over. Employee #1 lifted off from the landing area after hooking up the drop line and flew out over the canyon. He was about 300 ft from the landing area when the drop line became entangled in the top of a tree. Feeling and hearing the engine start to pull, he turned back toward the landing area. As he did so, the caught line pulled the helicopter toward the ground. The top 20 ft of the tree in which the line was caught was removed as the helicopter went down. The crash site was not found until about four hours after the accident. First aid was provided, and Employee #1 was transported by Life Flight to Washoe Medical Center in Reno, NV. He was treated for a broken ankle and ribs.

helicopter, logging, fracture, ankle, fall, entangled, aircraft, work rules, clearance, caught by

Accident: 171043193 - Killed In Helicopter Crash

Employee #1, a helicopter pilot, was lifting a load when the helicopter's tail section experienced mechanical failure. The helicopter did a 360 degree turn and the crashed into some trees, killing Employee #1.

helicopter, logging, fall, struck against, mech malfunction, aircraft

Accident: 200900165 - Killed When Struck By Helicopter Blade

Employee #1 was involved in a helicopter crash. He was struck by the blade and killed.

helicopter, blade, struck by, aircraft, aircraft propeller

Accident: 14422083 - Killed By Shrapnel From Broken Helicopter Blade

A power line worker was tied off to a transmission tower to install rigging for the installation of an overhead power line. He had gained access to the tower by helicopter. As the helicopter pulled away, the rotor blade hit the tower. Shrapnel from the broken blade struck the employee, killing him.

elec utility work, struck by, helicopter, transmission tower, aircraft, aircraft propeller, flying object

Accident: 170101943 - Three Killed In Helicopter Crash

At approximately 6:00 a.m. on September 11, 1995, Employee #3 was flying Employees #1 and #2, both nurses, to Bainbridge Island to assist with a pregnancy-related emergency. Upon approach, the helicopter crashed into the water for an undetermined reason. All three employees were killed. According to the King County medical examiner's office, the bodies of Employees #1 and #2 were recovered having sustained multiple fractures and lacerations and cuts to the head, torso, and extremities. Neither Employee #3 nor the main fuselage of the helicopter has yet been recovered. Further details concerning this accident should be directed to the National Transportation Safety Board, case #SE 95 FA 214.

aircraft, laceration, helicopter, laceration, fracture, head, torso, water, fall

Accident: 789727 - Pilot Killed In Helicopter Crash

On June 1, 1995, at six miles northwest of Umpqua, OR, Employee #1, a helicopter pilot, was maneuvering the helicopter to lift a section of a hooked log. The tail section of the helicopter came in contact with a tree, causing the tail rotor to come off. The helicopter spun and crashed. Employee #1 was pronounced dead on arrival and removed from the scene by the Chapel of the Firs.

logging, helicopter, struck against, lost control

Accident: 170234454 - Pilot Breaks Neck In Helicopter Crash

Employee #1, a pilot, was flying a Bell 204-UH1-B helicopter, moving logs from the ground to the landing. The helicopter lost power and crashed. The pilot was hospitalized with a broken neck.

aircraft, fracture, lost control, helicopter, neck, collision, agriculture, fall, mech malfunction

Accident: 789529 - Skull Fractured When Struck By Tree

At approximately 3:00 p.m. on December 8, 1994, Employee #1, a hooker/choker setter, was working on a helicopter logging sale approximately 30 miles northwest of Klamath Falls, OR. He was working within a tree length of another hooker who was hooking up a tree to the helicopter's drop line. The rotor-wash kicked out a hung 11 in. (dbh) Douglas fir that then fell toward Employee #1 and struck him on top of the head. Employee #1 sustained a fractured skull and was flown by the logging helicopter to Rogue Valley Medical Center in Medford.

logging, tree, skull, struck by, helicopter, lodged tree, falling object, fracture, clearance, work rules

Accident: 14305270 - Killed When Struck On Head By Helicopter Blades

At approximately 1:15 p.m. on November 20, 1994, Employee #1 walked under the main rotor of a helicopter that was idling during refueling to ask the pilot for a ride. Employee #1 then headed back along the boom, crossed under it, and walked back along the boom on the rotor side. He was killed when he was struck on the head by the tail rotor blades.

struck by, helicopter, rotating parts, head, inattention, aircraft, work rules, rotor

Accident: 170236434 - Pilot Killed In Helicopter Crash

On May 12, 1993, the crew were flying in a helicopter piloted by Employee #1. They were flown to the work area approximately 1/2 mile away on a very steep hillside. The helicopter brought one turn of logs to the landing and then fueled up. Employee #1 went back for another turn of logs, which was hooked on by another employee. After hooking the next turn of logs, a second employee turned and headed up the hill to the next log. He gave the "okay, clear" signal over the 2-way radio to Employee #1. The helicopter then began the lift. At this time the other employee heard a loud pop and turned around just in time to see pieces of the helicopter rotors go flying through the air. The helicopter then flipped upside down and fell approximately 100 to 150 feet to the ground, landing on its top. It then rolled over completely and landed again on its top in a small draw where it burst into flames. An attempt was made to rescue Employee #1, but because of the full load of fuel that had just been taken on, the flames were very hot. The pilot, Employee #1, died at the scene and his body was later removed.

logging, lost control, fire, burn, helicopter, steep grade, fall, roll-over