Bell 206L-1 N2756A

Summary

On 13 July 2005 at about 15:00 local time, a Bell 206L-1 registered N2756A was involved in an accident near West Plains, Missouri, 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

13 July 2005 at 15:00

Classification

Accident

Location

West Plains, Missouri, United States

Nearest airport

West Plains Municipal (UNO)

Coordinates

36.8786, -91.9028

Aircraft

Bell 206L-1

Registration

N2756A

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

West Plains → West Plains

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CHI05LA186

Nobody was injured.

A loss of engine power for undetermined reasons during the intentional autorotation. The pilot's misjudgment of the touchdown flare leading to a hard landing was an additional cause. A contributing factor was the intentional autorotation.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The helicopter was substantially damaged during a hard landing following a loss of engine power. The operator reported that during the training flight, the check airman initiated a simulated engine failure. The report stated that the pilot lowered the collective and entered an autorotation. The operator stated that when the throttle was advanced to recover from the autorotation, the engine out annunciator light illuminated and a full autorotation was performed which terminated in a hard landing. The main rotor subsequently contacted the tail boom severing it. Engine test runs revealed that the engine would not reach 100-percent power, remaining at 95 to 98-percent (cruise) power. The fuel control unit and power turbine governor units were tested according to current production test specifications. Minor anomalies to the test requirements were observed on both units, however, none of the anomalies were consistent with a loss of engine power. The post accident inspection and testing did not reveal any conditions which would have precluded sustained engine operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.