Eurocopter AS 350 B2 accident near Loris, South Carolina, July 3, 2009
On July 3, 2009 at about 1:00 am local time, a Eurocopter AS 350 B2 (helicopter), registered N53963, was substantially damaged in an accident during approach near Loris, South Carolina (Loris Community Hospital Helip airport). It was a positioning flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The crew's failure to see and avoid a steel pole during a nighttime approach to the helipad.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 3, 2009 · about 1:00 am local time
- Place
- Loris, South Carolina · Loris Community Hospital Helip · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Eurocopter AS 350 B2 · all AS 350 B2s on the register
- Registration
- N53963 · no longer on the register · serial 3963
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Positioning flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was performing a visual nighttime approach to a hospital heliport to pick up a patient for transport. The pilot flew the final approach west, into the wind. As the helicopter approached the helipad the two onboard clinicians were calling out obstructions, such as trees and light poles. About 5 feet above the helipad the tailrotor struck a short steel pole adjacent to the helipad. The helicopter shuttered and vibrated, but the pilot was able to continue the landing. Although all three crewmembers had been to the heliport before, they forgot about the short steel poles aligned adjacent to the helipad. The recorded weather at an airport approximately 15 miles northeast of the accident site, about the time of the accident, included calm wind, clear skies, and visibility of 10 miles. After the accident, the hospital removed the short steel poles adjacent to the helipad and the Federal Aviation Administration initiated research into the crew training, operations specifications, and the history of the poles being erected near the helipad. Additionally, the operator’s regional safety manager stated that all pilots have begun additional training to position aircraft in such a manner to ensure that all components of the aircraft are clear of all hazards on the periphery or boundaries of marked landing zones/heliports, rather than attempting to place the center of the aircraft at the center of the landing zone/heliport. The operator also initiated a reassessment of hazards at landing zones/heliports within each of their regions’ normal operating area, and reported that the information from the reassessments will be added as part of normal preflight briefings and risk assessments.
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
- Collision during takeoff/land during approach defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Psychological › Attention/monitoring › Monitoring environment › Flight crew
- cause Environmental issues › Physical environment › Object/animal/substance › Pole › Awareness of condition
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot, private
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 2,701 hours in all; 501 in this make and model; 46 in the last 90 days; 19 in the last 30 days; 1,901 as pilot in command; 0 on instruments
- Last flight review: December 15, 2008
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,377 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, June 29, 2009; 7 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,120 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Turbomeca ARRIEL 1D1 (turboshaft); 0 hours total
- Operator: Omniflight Helicopter INC.
The flight
- Departed from: HYW Conway SC
- Destination: 5SC5 Loris SC
Weather at the time
- Light: night
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 79°F (26°C), dew point 64°F (18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.87 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 3 |
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.