Mbb BO-105 CBS-4 accident near Cameron, Louisiana, October 10, 1996
On October 10, 1996 at about 9:47 am local time, a Mbb BO-105 CBS-4 (helicopter), registered N299EH, was destroyed in an accident near Cameron, Louisiana. It was a positioning flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the pilot's failure to maintain clearance with terrain for undetermined reasons. Contributing factors were the dark night and pilot fatigue.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 10, 1996 · about 9:47 am local time
- Place
- Cameron, Louisiana
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mbb BO-105 CBS-4 BO-105 CBS
- Registration
- N299EH · no longer on the register · serial S-807
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Positioning flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The twin-engine helicopter departed a field base during the early morning into the dark night to reposition the aircraft to a full service facility for maintenance. No radio/distress calls were received from the helicopter after the pilot called in his flight plan. The wreckage was found severely fragmented along a 300-foot long energy path located in coastal marshland approximately 4 nautical miles north of the field base. Detailed examination of the aircraft, engines, and drive components did not reveal pre-impact anomalies that would have contributed to the accident, and there was no evidence of an in-flight breakup or in-flight collision with an object. The pilot had over 11,200 hours of helicopter time, of which 316 were at night and 446 were under actual or simulated instrument conditions. The flight was conducted during the 11th and 12th hours of the pilot's 12-hour duty shift, which was his first night back from a two-week vacation during which he had been sleeping nights.
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: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: helicopter; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 11,897 hours in all; 2,053 in this make and model; 37 in the last 90 days; 18 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,546 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, October 8, 1996; 7 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,512 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Allison 250-C20B (turboshaft); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: K7R5 at 9:43 am
- Destination: LCH Lake Charles LA
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 280° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 63°F (17°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.
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.