Aerospatiale 350D accident near Miami, Florida, March 8, 1990
On March 8, 1990 at about 4:16 pm local time, a Aerospatiale 350D (helicopter), registered N5778W, was destroyed in an accident near Miami, Florida. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 2 people were killed and 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
FATIGUE FAILURE OF AN ENGINE TURBINE BLADE, WHICH RESULTED IN A LOSS OF POWER. ROUGH OCEAN WATER IN THE EMERGENCY LANDING AREA WAS A RELATED FACTOR.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 8, 1990 · about 4:16 pm local time
- Place
- Miami, Florida · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed and 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Aerospatiale 350D
- Registration
- N5778W · no longer on the register · serial 1394
- 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
THE HELICOPTER WAS IN CRUISE FLT OVR THE OCEAN, WHEN THE PLT HEARD A LOUD NOISE & NOTED A LOSS OF ENG POWER. HE ENTERED AN AUTOROTATION & TOLD THE PSGRS TO PUT ON THEIR LIFE JACKETS. AT ABT 100' ABV THE WATER, HE DEPLOYED THE EMERG FLOATS, THEN SUCCESSFULLY LANDED IN THE OCEAN ABOUT 3 MI FROM SHORE. AFTER LNDG, A WAVE HIT THE HELICOPTER & IT ROLLED OVR. THE PLT & PSGRS GOT ONTO THE BELLY OF THE HELICOPTER, THEN THE PLT DOVE UNDER THE WATER & RETRIEVED THE ELT. HOWEVER, AFTER HE ACTIVATED THE ELT, ANOTHER WAVE HIT & THE PLT DROPPED IT AS HE REACHED TO HELP A PSGR. ONE PSGR EXPIRED ABT 8 HRS LATER & THE OTR PSGR EXPIRED ABT 15 HRS AFTER THE ACDNT. BOTH DIED FM DROWNING. THE ACDNT OCCURRED AT ABT 1115 EST; THE COAST GUARD WAS NOTIFIED OF THE SITUATION AT 1530 EST. THE PLT WAS RESCUED AT 0430 EST THE NEXT DAY. A SUBSEQUENT EXAM OF THE ENG REVEALED THAT A POWER TURBINE BLADE HAD FAILED FROM FATIGUE, WHICH RESULTED IN THE LOSS OF ENG POWER.
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: instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 1,878 hours in all; 808 in this make and model; 82 in the last 90 days; 32 in the last 30 days; 1,548 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,576 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, March 7, 1990; 1 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,300 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming LTS-101-600A2 (turboshaft); 0 hours total
- Operator: International Helicopter CORP.
The flight
- Departed from: Fisher Island FL at 4:00 pm
- Destination: MYCC Cat Cay,Bahamas OF
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 080° at 20 knots, gusting 25
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 2,500 ft
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Observation at 10:47 am from TMB
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
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.