Accident · 2019-01-29
What the record says
- Event date
- 2019-01-29
- Event type
- Accident
- Highest injury level
- Fatal injury
- Aircraft
- Bell 407 (N191SF)
- Operating rule
- Part 135
- Operator
- VIKING AVIATION LLC Operator named in NTSB report
- Operated by (per NTSB report)
- VIKING AVIATION INC
Probable cause
The NTSB determines that the probable cause of this accident was Survival Flight's inadequate management of safety, which normalized pilots' and operations control specialists' noncompliance with risk analysis procedures and resulted in the initiation of the flight without a comprehensive preflight weather evaluation, leading to the pilot's inadvertent encounter with instrument meteorological conditions, failure to maintain altitude, and subsequent collision with terrain. Contributing to the accident was the Federal Aviation Administration's inadequate oversight of the operator's risk management program and failure to require Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 135 operators to establish safety management system programs.
Source: NTSB case CEN19FA072Flight crew
Certification and experience as recorded in the NTSB accident database for this event. The NTSB records these facts about the crew's flying history; GroundCheck shows them as filed, without names or identities.
| Role | Certificate | Instrument rating | Age | Medical | Flight hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pilot pilot flying | Flight instructor / Commercial | Airplane / Helicopter | 34 | Class 2 (2018-11-18) | 1,855 total · 83 in this make/model · 1,787 as PIC |
Facts as the NTSB records them — GroundCheck adds no judgement. Preliminary records may be revised as the investigation proceeds.