Eurocopter France AS-350-B2 N911ES

Summary

On 26 January 2006 at about 16:25 local time, a Eurocopter France AS-350-B2 registered N911ES, operated by Frederick A. Rappleyea Jr., was involved in an accident near Port Isabel, Texas, 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

26 January 2006 at 16:25

Classification

Accident

Location

Port Isabel, Texas, United States

Nearest airport

Port Isabel - Cameron County (KPIL)

Coordinates

31.5505, -98.0503

Aircraft

Eurocopter France AS-350-B2

Registration

N911ES

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Frederick A. Rappleyea Jr.

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Harlingen → Port Isabel

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

DFW06CA062

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's failure to maintain rotor RPM and his improper touchdown during a simulated hovering autorotation. A contributing factor was the flight instructor's delayed remedial action.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The 5,591-hour helicopter flight instructor reported that he was on the second day of training of a newly hired 10,000-hour commercial helicopter rated pilot. After the pilot's first landing on Runway 03 (4,999-feet long by 150-feet wide asphalt-concrete runway), the flight instructor asked the pilot to perform an Emergency Medical Service (EMS) takeoff (as described in the company's operations manual), and then enter the local traffic pattern. The flight instructor stated that the EMS takeoff procedure began by the pilot bringing the helicopter to a three to five foot hover in order to conduct a power check prior to the application of takeoff power. While the helicopter was at a hover, the flight instructor initiated a hovering autorotation; the pilot immediately applied forward cyclic, and then pulled up on the collective. The flight instructor considered the pilot's flight control inputs to be excessive, resulting in a high sink rate and an undesirable helicopter attitude for touchdown. The instructor immediately took control of the helicopter and brought it back to a level attitude in an attempt to cushion the landing. The flight instructor stated that the main rotor RPM was low and most of the collective had been used to prevent a nose low impact. The helicopter then descended approximately one to two feet, impacting terrain in a level attitude and then bounced forward approximately four feet.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.