Robinson R44 N744WT
29 November 2017 · New Orleans, Louisiana, United States · No injuries
Summary
On 29 November 2017 at about 22:30 local time, a Robinson R44 registered N744WT was involved in an accident near New Orleans, Louisiana, 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.
The record
- Date
- at 22:30
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- New Orleans, Louisiana, United States
- Nearest airport
- Lakefront (NEW)
- Coordinates
- 30.0400, -90.0225
- Aircraft
- Robinson R44
- Registration
- N744WT
- Category
- Helicopter
- Year built
- 2006
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Positioning
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- New Orleans → New Orleans
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- GAA18CA066
People
Nobody was injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Probable cause
The pilot’s failure to land the helicopter with both skids on the trailer platform, which resulted in a loss of control.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The helicopter pilot reported that, while positioning the helicopter on a trailer for maintenance, the helicopter landed on the trailer with the left skid off the platform, and the tail rotor struck the ground. The pilot added that the helicopter climbed about 50 ft, and he reduced power. During the descent, the main rotor blade struck the tailboom, and the helicopter impacted the pavement. The helicopter sustained substantial damage to the fuselage, tailboom, and main rotor blades. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Robinson R44 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 Feb 2017 | Robinson R44 | Spofford, Texas, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 4 May 2017 | Robinson R44 | Beloretsk, Russia | LLC Light Air | Fatal | 3 |
| 5 May 2017 | Robinson R44 | Santa Barbara, California, United States | Santa Barbara Helicopter Tours | Serious injuries | - |
| 3 Aug 2017 | Robinson R44 | Solomon, Alaska, United States | Bering Air, Inc. | No injuries | - |
| 10 May 2017 | Robinson R44 | Vevay, Indiana, United States | AG-Max LLC | No injuries | - |
| 3 Jul 2017 | Robinson R44 | Bella Vista, California, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 May 2017 | Cessna 172S | New Orleans, Louisiana, United States | - | Unknown | - |
| 3 Jul 2017 | Cessna 172 | Shreveport, Louisiana, United States | Tubreaux Aviation Services LLC. | No injuries | - |
| 17 Aug 2017 | Beechcraft A36 | Gonzales, Louisiana, United States | Gulf Central Aviation LLC | No injuries | - |
| 30 Jan 2017 | Zenith CH750 STOL | Jennings, Louisiana, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 15 Apr 2017 | Cessna 210 | Minden, Louisiana, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 15 Feb 2017 | Bell Helicopter Textron Canada 429 | Shreveport, Louisiana, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |