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ERA22FA279

2022-06-22 · Amherstdale, West Virginia, United States · Fatal · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport 6L4

Current FAA registration · N98F

Make / Model
BELL UH-1B
Year of manufacture
1962 · 60 years old at event
Engine
LYCOMING T53-L-11D (1100 hp)
Seats / Engines
6 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
20141205
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S ADA948

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

the operator’s failure to adequately inspect the former military turbine powered helicopter, which allowed an engine issue to progress and result in a loss of engine power and a subsequent loss of control after the helicopter struck powerlines during a forced landing. Also causal to the accident were the following: 1) the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) inadequate inspection and maintenance standards for former military turbine powered aircraft operating with an experimental exhibition airworthiness certificate; 2) the operator’s use of those standards instead of more rigorous standards, which were readily available to the operator and previously used to inspect and maintain the helicopter; and 3) the FAA’s inadequate oversight of the operator, which did not detect the inherent risk associated with the operation.

Factual narrative

On June 22, 2022, about 1645 eastern daylight time, a Bell Helicopter UH-1B helicopter, N98F, was destroyed when it was involved in an accident in Amherstdale, West Virginia. About 15 minutes after the flight departed, the helicopter impacted two powerlines and a rock face during a forced landing, and a postcrash fire ensued. The pilot and five passengers were fatally injured. The helicopter was operated by MARPAT Aviation under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • — Organizational issues-Support/oversight/monitoring-Safety programs-Adequacy of safety program-FAA/Regulator
  • — Aircraft-Aircraft power plant-Engine (turbine/turboprop)-Turbine section-Failure
  • — Aircraft-Aircraft power plant-(general)-(general)-Inadequate inspection
  • — Personnel issues-Task performance-Inspection-Scheduled/routine inspection-Owner/builder
  • — Organizational issues-Management-Policy/procedure-Adequacy of policy/proc-Operator
  • — Organizational issues-Support/oversight/monitoring-Oversight-Oversight of operation-FAA/Regulator

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2022_ERA22FA279.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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Related research

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