Lenart ROTORWAY EXEC 162F N929BL

Summary

On 3 March 2001 at about 19:30 local time, a Lenart ROTORWAY EXEC 162F registered N929BL, operated by Bradley Lenart, was involved in an accident near Wallingford, Connecticut, United States. 2 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

3 March 2001 at 19:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Wallingford, Connecticut, United States

Nearest airport

Unk/Na (NONE)

Coordinates

41.4399, -72.8104

Aircraft

Lenart ROTORWAY EXEC 162F

Registration

N929BL

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Bradley Lenart

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Wallingford → Seymour

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

IAD01LA036

Nobody was injured.

flight instructor's failure to follow published checklist procedures, which resulted in the forward ballast weight not being moved to the tailboom prior to departure.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

In preparation for an instructional flight, the flight instructor flew the helicopter from the student pilot/builder's yard to an open field across the street for the purpose of added take-off room with two people on board. Prior to this relocation, the forward ballast weight required for solo operations remained on the front right skid. The flight instructor and student agreed that the student would move the ballast weight from the forward right skid to the tail boom before getting into the helicopter. When the student met the instructor across the street, he was concerned about the skids being in the dirt. The instructor reassured the student that the ground was solid. The instructor then slid from the left seat to the right seat and the student got into the helicopter and sat in the left seat. Both occupants forgot about repositioning the ballast weight. When the instructor lifted the helicopter to hover, the nose pitched down and the helicopter accelerated forward into trees. The instructor stated that he did not use the pre-take off checklist, which would have reminded him about repositioning the ballast weight. Examination of the flight manual revealed that in the weight and balance section, it stated: "SOLO flight is performed ONLY FROM THE LEFT SEAT, and must have the ballast weight placed on the front passenger skid. DUAL flight requires the ballast weight be placed on the rear mount tube under the tail boom." There were no mechanical deficiencies.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.