Loss of Engine Power and Ditching Liberty Helicopters Inc. Operating a FlyNYON Doors-Off Flight

This two-dimensional animated reconstruction shows the sequence of events in the accident, which occurred on March 11, 2018, about 1908 eastern daylight time. The doors-off helicopter flight over New York City was operated by Liberty Helicopters Inc. per a contractual agreement with NYONair. The vehicle involved was an Airbus Helicopters AS350 B2 equipped with an emergency flotation system. The helicopter lost engine power and the pilot executed an autorotative descent and ditching on the East River. After touchdown, the helicopter rolled inverted and submerged.
The sequence of events was reconstructed based on information from radar data, aircraft performance data, two cell phone videos taken by witnesses and a GoPro camera mounted inside the helicopter.
A sequence of graphics is used to provide an overview of the accident and indicate the helicopter’s position as time advanced. Still images are followed by a continuous animation of the accident helicopter to the time of the ditching on the East River. The animation does not depict the weather or visibility conditions. The animation ends with two simultaneous video clips showing the helicopter touching down on the East River and then rolling inverted. The animation includes audio narration.

The animation begins with a picture of the accident aircraft, an Airbus Helicopters AS350 B2, being flown with the doors off. Next, two side-by-side photographs show front and back views of an exemplar full-body, fall-protection harness; each passenger wore a fall-protection harness to keep them from falling out of the helicopter when taking photographs with their feet extending out the open doorways.

An overall map of the area shows the origin of the flight at Helo Kearny Heliport, Kearny, New Jersey to the accident location of the East River. A moving two-dimensional graphic model of the helicopter depicts the initial part of the flight, which passed the Statue of Liberty and proceeded to the East River. The motion of the graphic model of the helicopter follows the recorded ground track of the flight, with a white line tracing the ground track.

A graphical sketch of the inside of the helicopter illustrates the seating arrangement and position changes of the pilot and 5 passengers; the pilot was seated on the right and one passenger was in the left front seat, with the other four passengers in the back seat. Photographs indicate the three floor-mounted engine control levers located between two front seats, including the fuel flow control lever and the fuel shutoff lever.

The map view changes to a focused view concentrating on the last 2 minutes of the flight, when the helicopter lost engine power, and the pilot executed an autorotative descent and ditching on the East River. The left side of the screen shows the position of the helicopter in a continuous real-time animation. The locations where the helicopter began to lose altitude and where the emergency flotation system was deployed are indicated on the ground track. The floats are indicated as yellow squares on each side of the graphic model of the helicopter. The helicopter’s altitude and airspeed are indicated at the bottom of the frame, along with the local time. Altitude and airspeed data end when the helicopter is below 100 feet above ground level.

Photographs on the right side of the screen from an exemplar helicopter illustrate the sequence of events whereby the tail of the tether attached to the fall-protection harness on the front seat passenger pulled the fuel shutoff lever into the up (or off) position, which would stopped fuel flow to the engine. Another photograph illustrates how the pilot reset the fuel shutoff lever to the down (or on) position, but at too low an altitude to have time to restart the engine.

The animation transitions to two simultaneous cell phone videos taken by witnesses as the helicopter ditches on the East River and rolls inverted.

ERA18MA099

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