Enstrom 480 accident near Dryden, Michigan, January 25, 2001
On January 25, 2001 at about 11:12 pm local time, a Enstrom 480 (helicopter), registered N704G, was substantially damaged in an accident near Dryden, Michigan. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured and 2 people had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilots failure to maintain altitude/clearance from the terrain. The dark night was a factor.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 25, 2001 · about 11:12 pm local time
- Place
- Dryden, Michigan · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured and 2 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Enstrom 480
- Registration
- N704G · registry record · serial 5035
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The helicopter was on the downwind leg of an approach to land at the pilot's private heliport. The pilot said, "I took off from my hangar on my farm at about 5:00 pm with 2 friends to just go for a flight local. After flying about 40 minutes in the area of my farm we started back home. The weather was perfect with hardly any wind under 5 knots out of [the] north. I started a southernly downwind to my landing pad. We had just got over a frozen lake in the downwind when without warning or any reason to believe anything was wrong, the helicopter drop[ped] straight down on the lake without me moving any flight controls." A postaccident examination of the helicopter was conducted. The helicopter came to rest about 300 feet from the initial impact point on the frozen lake. No anomalies were found with respect to the airframe that could be associated with a pre-impact condition. No anomalies were found with respect to the engine. The end of civil twilight occured at 1807 and the phase of the moon was a waxing crescent with 1% of the Moon's visible disk illuminated.
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
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 800 hours in all
- Last flight review: October 15, 2000
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: serious injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 92 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, November 7, 2000; 6 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,800 lb
- Seats: 5
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rolls-Royce 250-C20W (turboshaft); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PVT Metamora MI at 10:00 pm
- Destination: NONE Dryden MI
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 230° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 25°F (-4°C), dew point 16°F (-9°C)
- Altimeter: 30.30 inHg
- Observation at 10:53 pm from FNT, 25 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
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 never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.