NTSB Factual Report

HISTORY OF FLIGHT

On February 10, 2013, about 0330 Pacific standard time, a Bell Helicopter 206B JetRanger, N59518, collided with terrain shortly after departing from a landing zone (LZ) on a movie ranch near Acton, California. Orbic Air, LLC was operating the helicopter under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91. The commercial pilot and two passengers (an actor and a camera-operator) sustained fatal injuries; the helicopter sustained substantial damage. The local flight departed the LZ about one minute prior to the accident for the purpose of shooting an aerial video sequence. Dark night visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed.

The helicopter was being used for the filming of a reality television show. The pilot and several members of the production crew had scouted the movie ranch location a few weeks prior, at which time they discussed the helicopter's maneuver possibilities, equipment needed, and filming planning. Following that meeting, the pilot filed a Plan of Action (POA) waiver with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and the filming day was scheduled for the evening of February 9th.

The tentative plan scripted for the production shoot called for an actor to drop a backpack to the ground while the helicopter was in a hover, enabling the cameras to film the airborne actor, the backpack receiver on the ground, and the helicopter executing the mission. There were two shots needed of the backpack being dropped, to be done by two different actors, at two separate locations, both of which were at the movie ranch.

The pilot departed on February 9 about 1645 from the helicopter's base at Van Nuys Airport, Van Nuys, California, with about 55 gallons of fuel onboard and an additional 10 gallons of fuel in plastic containers. The helicopter arrived at the LZ, and about 1730, the pilot conducted a safety meeting with the production crewmembers, briefing them of the potential hazards of having the helicopter on-site. The pilot unloaded the fuel containers and removed the left-side doors.

A Canon EOS 300PL video camera was used by the rear-seated camera operator on both a prior flight and the accident flight, as was a Sounds Devices 702T audio recorder. A GoPro Hero camera was installed on the upper windshield frame to film the actor on the accident flight. Additionally, a 3-mode FLEXiT flexible light pad was affixed to the center windshield frame with a grip clip and cupped to direct the light toward the actor's face for the purpose of the GoPro recording. The actor and camera-operator additionally had headlights with red and white light settings and there was a dim white map light installed on the helicopter between the actor and pilot on the bulkhead. NTSB investigators recovered audio and video recordings from these devices at the accident site, and a recorder specialist with the NTSB Vehicle Recorder Division downloaded and synced the files together and created a partial transcript that is contained within the Recorder Specialist's factual report available in the public docket for this accident.

Prior Flight

The first flight began around 2100 and was conducted with the pilot in the right-front seat, the actor in the left-front seat, and the camera operator in the left-rear seat. The flight's duration was about an hour and consisted of the pilot performing four bag drops over a predetermined drop zone (an open clearing surrounded by trees) located a few hundred yards away from the LZ. While the helicopter made a pass over the drop zone, the actor would drop the backpack, and then they would return to the LZ to retrieve the backpack and discuss the necessary changes in the flight to capture the correct shot.

Prior to departure, while the pilot was waiting for the engine to warm up, a conversation ensued between the pilot, actor, and camera operator about the lighting being used inside the helicopter. The camera operator stated that he wanted to ensure the pilot was comfortable with the FLEXiT light and instructed the actor to turn it on by clicking it 3 times. Upon the light coming on, the pilot responded "whoa, that is, that did change a bit." The camera operator then instructed the actor to "click it down, uh, once." The pilot stated "okay that's better," followed by making a request to the actor to move the light a certain way the actor confirmed. The camera operator added "you know we can turn it off once we're airborne." The pilot did not make a verbal acknowledgement and began talking to the ground crew. The camera operator interjected to the actor about turning his headlight off. The camera operator then asked the pilot if the actor should turn his headlight off to which the pilot said yes.

The helicopter departed and was en route to the drop zone when the pilot established communication with the ground crew again. He interrupted his communication and stated "okay, I gotta lose that light for right now guys," and "I can't see." About 10 seconds later, he told the actor that his headlight had to be turned off. Several seconds later the pilot communicated with the ground crew that they were "getting acclimated to the light here." As they neared the drop zone the actor asked, "want me to turn the light back on or we just staying with it off?" The pilot then told the actor that he would have to spot him because he was unable to see, which the actor acknowledged. After the bag drop, they returned to the LZ.

Ground crew radioed the pilot to ask if it was possible for him to slow the helicopter down more over the drop zone. The pilot responded that he would do that and was "just getting acclimated" and could not "see anything and especially the ground that's underneath me." A little later, the ground crew stated "just to be clear, I know that you are having site issues, but the goal is a slow hover and then a drop from there," which the pilot acknowledged. The ground crew later asked if the pilot was able to see the glow sticks on the ground, and the actor told the pilot that he was able to see the glow sticks. The pilot then told the ground crew that the actor was able to see the glow sticks and said "I can't see anything, so he's got to walk me through."

On the second bag-drop attempt, the pilot had to perform a go around stating that, "I can't uhh see where the ground is here." On the next attempt, the actor guided the pilot by giving visual cues near the bag drop zone for about 3 minutes until the bag drop occurred. About 15 seconds after, the ground crew asked, "is it possible to do an even slower hover than that?" The pilot responded by saying "yeah it's just uh, there's, I have to have a visual cue to see something around me."

While en route back to the LZ, the pilot asked the ground crew if they could arrange with the vehicles located near the drop zone to turn their headlights on so he could have a sense of depth perception and would be able to see a little better. They briefly discussed how the bag drop went, and the pilot again said that if the headlights on the vehicles were illuminated then "I can see the ground and then I can judge my speed… I have no rate of speed up here." A few minutes later, after discussing the next drop briefly, the actor commented that he didn't have enough time to release the bag and told the pilot "to make sure it doesn't keep moving forward..." The pilot responded saying that would be difficult because there was "no depth perception… you can't see anything."

Over the next eight minutes, there were requests from the ground crew and actor for the pilot to hold a hover to which the pilot replied that the helicopter was not capable of the hover they desired and that "the key to the hover is being able to see something." The third bag drop was accomplished and again there was discussion about the next drop with regard to the actor and ground crew requesting a low hover or for the pilot to reverse the helicopter. The pilot said that would be difficult for him to perform without better visual cues and continued with him mentioning the safety risks of hovering backwards, concluding with "I can't see enough to hold the hover." The fourth bag drop was conducted with the actor guiding the pilot with verbalized visual cues near the drop zone and then they returned back to the LZ. The pilot queried the camera operator about the footage obtained and emphasized that safety is a priority. The pilot relayed his appreciation to the ground crew of not being pushed when flying at night, in an out-of-ground effect hover, with no visual cues. He added that it was "just the nature of the show" and that this is why he needed to do a couple of passes.

The production crew and pilot had a catered meal break at 2300, and the pilot rested in a trailer for about 1.5-2 hours.

Accident Flight

The next filming location was about 1,500 feet southeast of the LZ on a plateau located east of a north-south oriented valley. A dirt road ran along the plateau's edge (which was also the valley's eastern ridgeline), and the terrain west of the road sloped down about 85 feet to another dirt road. The terrain continued to gradually slope down from that road into the valley and dry riverbed that stretched about 1,000 feet to the west. There were no lights in the valley.

After his rest, the pilot went to the plateau to view the lighting situation and discuss with the director and other production crewmembers the second, and final, backpack-dropping mission. The helicopter was to hover at the west side of the valley and then maneuver east toward the plateau. The helicopter would then ascend from below the ridgeline with its left side in view for the actor to be filmed dropping the bag onto the plateau. There were two cranes set up with light directed toward the area of the plateau where the bag was to be dropped. The pilot requested that another smaller light be erected to illuminate the sloping terrain just below the dirt road (illuminating the ridgeline). He additionally requested that glow-sticks be placed in line on the slope to lead up to the drop zone. Both of the lighting requests were granted, and the director and pilot agreed on the scene and maneuvers to be performed.

After removing frost from the main rotor blades and windshield, the pilot departed the LZ about 0330 with a different actor in the left-front seat and the same camera operator in the left-rear seat. Witnesses observed the helicopter depart normally and fly toward the plateau from the west. According to some of the witnesses while the helicopter was maneuvering about 60 miles per hour, it pitched down and collided with the terrain below the ridgeline.

The GoPro recording started with the actor and camera operator settling into the helicopter. A little over a minute thereafter the pilot is heard telling the actor that he may need to turn off his headlight. The actor inquired if he could keep it on the red light to which the pilot responded that would be fine but "I just can't have you looking at me." The camera operator then asked the pilot "do you think we can try one click on the LED lights?" The pilot responded, "we'll see, it just really [sigh] blinds me."

The camera operator then began to speak to the actor and verbally instructed him on how to operate the FLEXiT light. The actor clicked the button, and the cockpit area illuminated. The camera operator remarked "that's two LEDs…that's pretty bright" and then remarked that they will see what the pilot says. As the pilot started the engine, the camera operator further clarified to the actor that two more clicks of the button would turn the light off. About seven minutes into the GoPro recording, the Canon recording began, providing a view of the cockpit from the camera operator's perspective. The FLEXiT light had 2 of its 16 LED lights illuminated (indicating it was in its lowest intensity position) and was folded toward the actor.

During takeoff from the LZ, the actor continued the scripted dialogue for about a minute until the pilot intervened saying, "I need to lose this light, this key light here." The camera operator acknowledged him and informed the actor to click the button twice to turn the light off. The actor reached forward to turn off the light. Eight seconds later the camera operator said "where did uh, we're going down low." The cockpit illuminated brighter twice and then went dark, an indication that the actor had turned off the light (over 12 seconds after the pilot's request). Simultaneously, the pilot responded "okay, okay, I can't…" and the camera operator interrupted saying "pull up, pull up." The helicopter impacted terrain 1 minute and 17 seconds after takeoff.

PERSONNEL INFORMATION

The pilot, age 59, held a commercial pilot certificate issued in January 2006 with ratings for rotorcraft-helicopters and single and multi-engine land airplanes with an instrument rating (airplane). He additionally held a flight instructor certificate with ratings for rotorcraft-helicopters and instrument. He held a second-class airman medical certificate issued in March 2012, with no limitations.

The pilot's personal flight records were not recovered. On his last application for a medical certificate, he reported a total flight time of 19,605 hours, of which 220 hours were accumulated in the last six months. In 2012, the pilot had flown 11 flights (equating to 37.7 hours) with Orbic Air, LLC, of which 7 were conducted in the accident helicopter for the purpose of aerial production.

According to FAA records, the pilot was involved in two prior helicopter accidents. The first accident, LAX03LA027, was in 2002, and the NTSB determined that it was the result of the pilot's inadequate visual lookout and failure to maintain adequate clearance from transmission wires while operating a helicopter for a television production. The second accident, LAX04LA216, was in 2004, and the NTSB determined that the pilot landed hard during a filming operation following a momentary loss of engine power for undetermined reasons.

In response to the 2002 accident, the FAA suspended the pilot's license for 30 days in December 2003 for operating a helicopter in a "careless and reckless manner." In 2007, the FAA took further enforcement action against the pilot, and his certificate was suspended for 45 days for "failing to remain in two-way-radio communication with air traffic controllers while flying in airspace in which two-way radio communication is required.''

A review of the FAA database revealed that neither the actor nor the camera operator held a pilot's certificate, and there was no information found to indicate that they had any knowledge of helicopter operations.

AIRCRAFT INFORMATION

The Bell Helicopter 206B2 JetRanger, serial number (s/n) 1322, was manufactured in 1974. A review of the logbooks revealed that the most recent 100-hour inspection of the airframe and engine was performed on January 24, 2013, at an airframe total time of 7,435.9 hours, equating to 6.3 hours prior to the accident.

The powerplant, an Allison 250-C20B, s/n CAE831376, was last overhauled in March 1990, equating to 833.9 operational hours before the accident. The helicopter's flight log was located in the wreckage. Those records indicated that the last time the helicopter was flown was 6 days prior to the accident where another pilot flew for 3.4 hours and did not report any squawks. On the log, the pilot had marked down the Hobbs meter time when departing from Van Nuys, indicating that he had flown the helicopter for 1.5 hours prior to the accident.

Operation

The helicopter was owned and registered to Van Nuys Copters, LLC and being operated by Orbic Air, LLC. Eyeworks USA, LLC, also doing business as Bongo, LLC, was the production company that had contracted Orbic Air to provide helicopter services for a reality television show they were producing. The pilot was operating under the movie manual of Crossbow Helicopters, a company that he owned. The pilot was listed in the insurance contract as being employed by Orbic Air, LLC.

METEOROLOGICAL

A routine aviation weather report generated by an Automated Surface Observation System at the airport indicated that about 5 minutes prior to the accident, the conditions were

NTSB Probable Cause

The pilot's decision to conduct a flight in dark night conditions with an illuminated cockpit light that degraded his visibility and his ability to identify and arrest the helicopter's descent while maneuvering, which resulted in controlled flight into terrain.