Aviation Enthusiasts; Two Pasadena Police choppers destroyed in ground accident. Alarming vid ca2012

[A HERETIC I AM]

This incident apparently happened in November of 2012, but I only recently received it via an aviation news subscription I have.

Two Bell 206's (OH-58's) were involved in a rotor collision accident at the Pasadena Police Benedict Heliport in Altadena, California.

This 5 minute vid starts with the accident itself and then follows with the entire sequence of events.

The pilot maneuvering was clearly at fault as he attempted to move his ship closer to the running aircraft preparing to take off when their rotors collided.
Watch the crewman at the port side of the running aircraft as the collision occurs. Scary stuff.

Both aircraft were total losses.

[cloudbase]

1. Not a career enhancing event. n/t

[A HERETIC I AM]

2. LOL...no, not in the least!

[Historic NY]

3. The question is why was one allowed to land when the pad wasn't clear.

Doesn't matter if it was outside the box, there was obvious ground activity on the pad.

[A HERETIC I AM]

4. It appears as if there was plenty of room...

because the incoming craft was able to come in and hover, before starting his maneuver toward the running unit.

Many helipads have a landing or approach area and separate "pads" so to speak. You can see them on Google Earth shots, both military and civilian heliports.

But yeah, the incoming pilot should have just left it where he initially came into the facility.

[petronius]

5. It looks like the helicopter on the ground was in the wrong spot;

the landing pilot didn't see that, and assumed otherwise. Here's a report from NTSB (maybe the final report? I'm not familiar with these things):

https://www.ntsb.gov/about/employment/_layouts/ntsb.aviation/brief2.aspx?ev_id=20121118X14342&ntsbno=WPR13GA044A&akey=1

[Liberal In Texas]

6. Interesting reading.

Looks like the pad design wasn't what it should have been and had been grandfathered in so it didn't have to meet current California code requirements. The fuel farm being closer than it should have been and a drainage problem resulted in the occasional practice of pushing an aircraft to pad 1 outside the box.

There is no control tower so pilots talk to each other about landing and takeoff on UNICOM. Apparently the ground helicopter didn't have his radios turned on at that point, and the arrival helicopter pilot stated she thought the ground helicopter was in the box.

One of those FUBARs that make a lot of people's day go bad.