Enstrom F-28C N1944J

Summary

On 24 October 1997 at about 18:35 local time, a Enstrom F-28C registered N1944J was involved in an accident near Fairview, Pennsylvania, 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

24 October 1997 at 18:35

Classification

Accident

Location

Fairview, Pennsylvania, United States

Nearest airport

Capital City (CXY)

Coordinates

40.2309, -76.8708

Aircraft

Enstrom F-28C

Registration

N1944J

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Ferry

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Capitol City → Latrobe

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

NYC98FA018

Nobody was injured.

inadequate maintenance, which led to detonation and a melted piston, and subsequent power loss.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The helicopter was purchased and flown about 1 hour to another airport. The following day the pilot departed on a ferry flight. About 5 minutes after takeoff, the engine lost power when the RPM dropped to 1,900, and the pilot entered autorotation. During the descent the engine continued to idle and the cabin filled with smoke. The helicopter landed hard and the main rotor blades struck the tailboom. The last annual inspection occurred 53 months before the accident. A Special Flight Permit was issued by the FAA for the ferry flight. The helicopter's engine was overhauled 33 months before the accident, and 3.9 hours had been logged on the engine from the date of overhaul, to the date of the helicopter's purchase. At the time of the accident the engine had accumulated a total of 6.7 hours since overhaul. Examination of the engine revealed the forward side of the #2 piston was melted and eroded away, and a hole had melted through the piston. An FAA publication described detonation as spontaneous combustion which can burn a hole completely through a piston.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.