Robinson R22 BETA N8340N

Summary

On 3 October 2000 at about 17:41 local time, a Robinson R22 BETA registered N8340N, operated by Helistream, Inc., was involved in an accident near Long Beach, California, United States. 2 people were on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

3 October 2000 at 17:41

Classification

Accident

Location

Long Beach, California, United States

Nearest airport

Long Beach (LGB)

Coordinates

33.8090, -118.1808

Aircraft

Robinson R22 BETA

Registration

N8340N

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Helistream, Inc.

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Santa Ana → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX01LA002

1 person had minor injuries.

The dual student's improper use of the collective and the flight instructor's inadequate supervision during the practice hovering autorotation maneuver. A factor was the underlying soft dirt terrain, which promoted the rollover event.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

During a dual instructional flight lesson, the flight instructor directed his student to perform a practice autorotation. Both he and his student were handling the flight controls. The CFI directed that the student enter the autorotation while hovering between 2 and 3 feet above the dirt field. The student responded by rapidly lowering the collective, and the helicopter descended. Before the CFI could regain control, the helicopter's left skid touched down in the dirt and "dug in." Thereafter, the main rotor blades impacted the ground, and the helicopter rolled over onto its side. During the 5-minute period that preceded the accident, the student had accomplished the training maneuver without demonstrating any unusual problems. During the preceding 90-day period, the CFI gave 180 hours of instruction to various students in the Robinson helicopter. His total dual instruction experience in the Robinson was 1,800 hours.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.