Airbus Helicopters INC AS350B3E accident near Frisco, Colorado, July 3, 2015
On July 3, 2015 at about 7:39 pm local time, a 2013 Airbus Helicopters INC AS350B3E, registered N390LG, was destroyed in an accident during takeoff near Frisco, Colorado (Summit Medical Center airport). It was flown under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person was killed and 2 people were seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
Airbus Helicopters' dual-hydraulic AS350 B3e helicopter's (1) preflight hydraulic check, which depleted hydraulic pressure in the tail rotor hydraulic circuit, and (2) lack of salient alerting to the pilot that hydraulic pressure was not restored before takeoff. Such alerting might have cued the pilot to his failure to reset the yaw servo hydraulic switch to its correct position during the preflight hydraulic check, which resulted in a lack of hydraulic boost to the pedal controls, high pedal forces, and a subsequent loss of control after takeoff. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's failure to perform a hover check after liftoff, which would have alerted him to the pedal control anomaly at an altitude that could have allowed him to safely land the helicopter. Contributing to the severity of the injuries was the helicopter's fuel system, which was not crash resistant and facilitated a fuel-fed postcrash fire.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 12, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 3, 2015 · about 7:39 pm local time · cases in 2015
- Place
- Frisco, Colorado · Summit Medical Center · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed and 2 people were seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Airbus Helicopters INC AS350B3E, built 2013
- Registration
- N390LG · no longer on the register · serial 7595
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The NTSB's full report is available at http://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/AccidentReports/Pages/AccidentReports.aspx. The Aircraft Accident Report number is NTSB/AAR-17/01. On July 3, 2015, about 1339 mountain daylight time, an Airbus Helicopters AS350 B3e helicopter, N390LG, registered to and operated by Air Methods Corporation, lifted off from the Summit Medical Center Heliport, Frisco, Colorado, and then crashed into a parking lot; the impact point was located 360 feet southwest of the ground-based helipad. The pilot was fatally injured, and the two flight nurses were seriously injured. The helicopter was destroyed by impact forces and a postcrash fire. The flight was conducted under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 135 on a company flight plan. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
What happened, in order
- Preflight or dispatch event during takeoff
- Loss of control in flight during takeoff defining event
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during uncontrolled descent
- Fire/smoke (post-impact) during post (impact)
The NTSB's findings
- cause Organizational issues › Development › Design › Equipment design › Manufacturer
- cause Organizational issues › Development › Design › Design of document/info › Manufacturer
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Hydraulic power system › (general) › Design other cases naming the heating, ice protection and utility systems
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Hydraulic power system › Hydraulic, indicating system › Design other cases naming the heating, ice protection and utility systems
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Use of equip/system › Pilot
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Forgotten action/omission › Pilot
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Use of checklist › Pilot
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- factor Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Lack of action › Pilot
- factor Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Use of policy/procedure › Pilot
- factor Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Fuel system › (general) › Design other cases naming the fuel system
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 13,231 hours in all; 5,231 in this make and model; 20 in the last 90 days; 12 in the last 30 days; 13,131 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: March 22, 2015
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 487.4 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, July 2, 2015
- Maximum gross weight: 5,225 lb
- Seats: 5
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Turbomeca Arriel 2D (turboshaft); 480 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Air Methods CORP
The flight
- Departed from: 91CO Frisco CO at 7:38 pm
- Destination: Gypsum CO
- Runway H1, 100 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 280° at 19 knots, gusting 24
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 6,000 ft
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.62 inHg
- Observation at 1:35 pm from KCCU, 7 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
53 documents, released by the NTSB on August 17, 2016. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N390LG: not on the register today · the record of its deregistration
- Engine: Turbomeca Arriel 2D 232 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Common Spirit St. Anthony Summit Hospital Heliport · nearest airport
- Accidents and incidents in Colorado 2,857 since 1982 · 381 in the last ten years
- Colorado 7,455 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/CEN15MA290.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.