Aerospatiale SA316B accident near Porterville, California, August 27, 1998
On August 27, 1998 at about 10:45 pm local time, a Aerospatiale SA316B (helicopter), registered N605RA, was substantially damaged in an accident near Porterville, California. It was a public-use flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to maintain adequate in-flight clearance between the bucket and trees resulting in the entanglement/separation of the long line and subsequent impact with and separation of the tail rotor assembly. A factor was the trees.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made September 29, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 27, 1998 · about 10:45 pm local time
- Place
- Porterville, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Aerospatiale SA316B
- Registration
- N605RA · registry record · serial 1165
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Public-use flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The helicopter had a bambi bucket on a 100-foot-long line. The bucket became entangled in some trees and the line snapped and wrapped itself around the tail rotor. The tail rotor blades and gearbox separated from the aircraft and the helicopter spun to the ground and rolled down a steep slope. The pilot did not report any mechanical malfunction with the aircraft prior to the accident. Wire marks were found on the tail rotor blades and around the output shaft.
The NTSB's narratives can run to many pages; this is the opening. Read the full report at the NTSB.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database and is rewritten in plain English only where the NTSB used codes; the probable cause and narrative are the NTSB's own words. This site 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 LAX98TA278.