Incident Name: Canyon Inn Fire, near San Gabriel Dam, Angeles National Forest
Date: 8/26/1968, 1230 hours
Personnel: pilot’s name unknown (If anyone knows the pilot’s name, please let us know.)
Age: pilot’s age unknown
Agency/Organization: Western Helicopter Service of San Bernardino under contract with the US Forest Service
Position: aerial firefighter
Summary: Alouette III, 1966 was being flown by the Vice President of the corporation who was not familiar with terrain. He lost control of craft when the sling bucket started to oscillate. The helicopter crashed, killing the pilot. (Explanation from Chuck Bushey’s list of aerial wildland fatal incidents.)
Maps
Canyon Fire, near San Gabriel Dam, Angeles National Forest
{mosmap lat=’34.1527879’|lon=’-117.881605’|marker=’0’|text=’location on Canyon Fire’}
Reports, Documentation, Lessons Learned
- Concise Information from the NTSB, FAA, AAP and research by the WLF Staff:
- 8/26/1968, Aérospatiale Alouette III
- pilot killed, vice president of the corporation — name unknown
- Operator: Western Helicopter Service of San Bernardino, CA
- Type: Aérospatiale Alouette III, 1966
- Location: near San Gabriel Dam, CA
- FAA Registration # N17030
- NTSB # LAX69F0152
- National Transportation Safety Board: Probable Cause (html)Miscellaneous – undetermined
- For more information consult the NTSB online lookup Utility Use NTSB Identification: LAX69F0152
Wildlandfire.com Links:
Media Articles and Reports
Photos, Videos, & Tributes
Contributors to this article: details about sling bucket from Chuck Bushey’s list, Mellie
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