Westland Helicopters 30-100 accident near Long Beach, California, November 8, 1983
On November 8, 1983 at about 1:00 am local time, a Westland Helicopters 30-100, registered N5830T, was destroyed in an accident near Long Beach, California (Los Alamitos Aaf airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 2 people were seriously injured and 4 people had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 8, 1983 · about 1:00 am local time
- Place
- Long Beach, California · Los Alamitos Aaf · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were seriously injured and 4 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Westland Helicopters 30-100
- Registration
- N5830T · no longer on the register · serial 005
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AT 4,000 FT MSL DIRECTIONAL CONTROL WAS LOST. WITNESSES OBSERVED THE HELICOPTER DESCENDING THROUGH THE LOCALIZED CLOUD LAYER IN A LEFT HIGH-ROTATION TURN, WITH THE PITCH ATTITUDE VARYING & ITS RATE OF DESCENT 'VERY FAST.' THE HELICOPTER THEN COLLIDED WITH HIGH TENSION WIRES. THE T/R SERVO WAS FOUND ATTACHED TO THE VERT STABILIZER MOUNT WITH THE UPPER PORTION OF THE N-DEG-2 LEVER ATTACHED TO IT. THE PITCH CHANGE LEVER FROM THE SERVO TO THE 90-DEG GEARBOX HAD FRACTURED DO TO HIGH CYCLE FATIGUE. THE T/R BLADES CONTAINED COUNTERWEIGHTS WHICH ARE DESIGNED, TOGETHER WITH AERODYNAMIC AIRLOADS, TO ASSIST IN RETURNING THE BLADES TO A NEAR 'NEUTRAL' PITCH IN THE EVENT OF A T/R DRIVE AND/OR PITCH CONTROL LEVER FAILURE.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 2,353 hours in all; 222 in this make and model; 193 in the last 90 days; 95 in the last 30 days; 1,833 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 558 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, November 5, 1983; 5 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 12,350 lb
- Seats: 18
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rolls-Royce GEM MK 510 (turboshaft); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: LAX Los Angeles CA
- Destination: SNA Orange County CA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Wind: from 270° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 2 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 2,500 ft; not recorded at 2,500 ft
- Temperature: 68°F (20°C), dew point 61°F (16°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | 1 | ||
| Passengers | 1 | 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.