Aerospatiale AS350-B3 accident near Santa Teresa, New Mexico, May 16, 2006
On May 16, 2006 at about 4:10 pm local time, a Aerospatiale AS350-B3 (helicopter), registered N183AE, was substantially damaged in an accident near Santa Teresa, New Mexico (Dona Ana County Airport). It was an instructional flight under public-use (government) rules. 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The flight instructor's improper supervision of the flight which resulted in a hard landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 16, 2006 · about 4:10 pm local time
- Place
- Santa Teresa, New Mexico · Dona Ana County Airport
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Aerospatiale AS350-B3 · all AS350-B3s on the register
- Registration
- N183AE · registry record · serial 3852
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · public-use (government) rules
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The purpose of the instructional flight was to conduct simulated emergency governor operations. The single-engine helicopter landed hard in a near level flight attitude in a slight tail low attitude. The landing gear skids collapsed on impact causing the lower vertical fin and tail rotor assembly to make contact with the ground, bucking the tailboom at the forward attaching points. The helicopter slid on it's fuselage 250 feet from the point of impact and came to rest in an upright position. The left pilot seat attenuated as designed but there was no evidence of attenuation on the right pilot seat. The crew performed an emergency engine shutdown and egressed unassisted. The wreckage of the helicopter was recovered to the facilities of the operator's secured facilities for further examination. The investigator examined the helicopter systems and tested the throttle twist grip for anomalies. The tests on the throttle twist grip simulated actions taken during the training flight. Several cycles of the governor from the "auto" mode to the "manual" mode for two minutes and back to the auto made for 3 minutes were performed to determine if a problem would occur that would restrict manual throttle operation. The examination determined after several cycles, that the solenoid that retracted to allow manual throttle manipulation would not fully retract and created a restriction due to heat generated during the activation. The helicopter seats were examined to determine if the any anomalies existed with the crash attenuating seats. The left front seat was documented as fully attenuating during the crash sequence and the right front seat had not attenuated. The seats were shipped for analysis to it's manufacturer's facilities in France for further testing. The examination and testing revealed that the seats met specifications and evidence on the right seat showed that the seat attenuation was initiating but did not appear to have sustained sufficient forces to fully stroke.
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
Flight instructor
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, flight instructor
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: helicopter; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 3,700 hours in all; 2 in this make and model; 83 in the last 90 days; 30 in the last 30 days; 2,900 as pilot in command; 1,010 on instruments
- Last flight review: August 1, 2005
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: minor injuries
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: helicopter; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 4,500 hours in all; 1 in this make and model; 61 in the last 90 days; 45 in the last 30 days; 3,900 as pilot in command; 1,200 on instruments
- Last flight review: May 1, 2005
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rear
- Injury: serious injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 352 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, January 1, 2006
- Maximum gross weight: 4,961 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Turbomeca ARRIEL 2B (turboshaft); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Santa Teresa NM at 3:30 pm
- Destination: ELP El Paso TX
- Runway 28, 8,500 ft by 100 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 100° at 4 knots, gusting 10
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 25,000 ft; clear
- Temperature: 68°F (20°C), dew point 46°F (8°C)
- Altimeter: 30.23 inHg
- Observation at 3:55 pm from 5T6
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | 1 |
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.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number DFW06TA127.