Bell 412 crash near Marroxo, Lugo, Galicia, Spain

The Bell 412 took off from Marroxo base with the water bucket deployed for a firefighting exercise. After lifting vertically it held the westerly departure course briefly, then began a descending right turn following the terrain, during which the bucket contacted a power line. The strike occurred 21 seconds after take-off, at 51 knots groundspeed and 36 feet above ground, leaving the bucket 23 feet clear of the ground — the height of the line. The contact pushed the bucket upward into the left horizontal stabiliser. Damage was minimal and the helicopter flew on for another 23 minutes without further incident. The investigation concluded the cause was a lack of adherence to procedures, with a take-off that failed to comply with the specified operating zones, trajectory, altitude and speed. The absence of the power line from the documentation held by the crew was a contributing factor. Final report A-027/2020.