EMS helicopter struck telephone wire while taking off from dirt road.

Attributes
ACN	87478
Time
Date	198805
Day	Sat
Local Time Of Day	1201 To 1800
Place
Locale Reference	atc facility : zzz
State Reference	US
Altitude	agl bound lower : 20 agl bound upper : 20
Environment
Flight Conditions	VMC
Light	Daylight
Aircraft 1
Operator	other
Make Model Name	Helicopter
Flight Phase	climbout : takeoff
Flight Plan	VFR
Person 1
Affiliation	Other
Function	flight crew : single pilot
Qualification	pilot : commercial pilot : instrument pilot : atp
Experience	flight time last 90 days : 120 flight time total : 7200 flight time type : 35
ASRS Report	87478
Events
Anomaly	other anomaly other
Independent Detector	other other : unspecified
Resolutory Action	none taken : detected after the fact
Consequence	other
Supplementary
Primary Problem	Flight Crew Human Performance
Air Traffic Incident	Pilot Deviation

Narrative:

An EMS helicopter landed on a dirt road near a seafood processing plant. He was to pick up a worker who had suffered a major back injury from a falling 500' block of ice. His takeoff path was obstructed by telephone wires. He elected to takeoff beneath the wires rather than to try to climb over them. He had 35 hours in this particular model aircraft. He misjudged the height of his tail rotor which cut the lowest of 3 phone wires. A 1/4 X 1/8 nick was made in 1 tail rotor blade. He was unaware of the wire strike until advised by radio as he approached his destination. He elected to proceed to the hospital with the patient rather than divert to an airport even though he said such diversion would have been the prudent thing to do.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: EMS HELICOPTER STRUCK TELEPHONE WIRE WHILE TAKING OFF FROM DIRT ROAD.

Narrative: AN EMS HELI LANDED ON A DIRT ROAD NEAR A SEAFOOD PROCESSING PLANT. HE WAS TO PICK UP A WORKER WHO HAD SUFFERED A MAJOR BACK INJURY FROM A FALLING 500' BLOCK OF ICE. HIS TKOF PATH WAS OBSTRUCTED BY TELEPHONE WIRES. HE ELECTED TO TKOF BENEATH THE WIRES RATHER THAN TO TRY TO CLB OVER THEM. HE HAD 35 HRS IN THIS PARTICULAR MODEL ACFT. HE MISJUDGED THE HEIGHT OF HIS TAIL ROTOR WHICH CUT THE LOWEST OF 3 PHONE WIRES. A 1/4 X 1/8 NICK WAS MADE IN 1 TAIL ROTOR BLADE. HE WAS UNAWARE OF THE WIRE STRIKE UNTIL ADVISED BY RADIO AS HE APCHED HIS DEST. HE ELECTED TO PROCEED TO THE HOSPITAL WITH THE PATIENT RATHER THAN DIVERT TO AN ARPT EVEN THOUGH HE SAID SUCH DIVERSION WOULD HAVE BEEN THE PRUDENT THING TO DO.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of August 2007 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.