Bell OH 58A N911RW

Summary

On 3 October 2019 at about 19:03 local time, a Bell OH 58A registered N911RW was involved in an accident near Fort Meade, Florida, United States. One person was 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 October 2019 at 19:03

Classification

Accident

Location

Fort Meade, Florida, United States

Coordinates

27.7022, -81.7689

Aircraft

Bell OH 58A

Registration

N911RW

Category

Helicopter

Year built

1972

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Public Use

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Bartow → Fort Meade

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA20LA004

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's failure to maintain control of the helicopter, which resulted in a dynamic rollover and impact with terrain.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was attempting to rescue a gyroplane pilot who made a forced landing in a phosphate pit and gypsum pond by having him grab the right skid of the helicopter and lift him to safety. The pilot anticipated that he would have to compensate for the change in the helicopter's center of gravity when the gyroplane pilot grabbed the skid. The gyroplane pilot’s first two attempts to grab the helicopter’s right skid were unsuccessful. The helicopter pilot stated that the gyroplane pilot’s third attempt was more aggressive than the previous two attempts and that he was not prepared for the sudden center-of-gravity shift that resulted once the gyroplane pilot grabbed the right skid. The helicopter then entered a dynamic rollover to the right and impacted the gypsum pond, resulting in substantial damage to the main rotor blades, tail rotor, and the tailboom.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.