Agusta A109E N142CF

Summary

On 8 November 2002 at about 16:35 local time, a Agusta A109E registered N142CF was involved in an accident near Fort Worth, Texas, United States. 3 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

8 November 2002 at 16:35

Classification

Accident

Location

Fort Worth, Texas, United States

Nearest airport

Harris Hospital (TE30)

Coordinates

32.7369, -97.3389

Aircraft

Agusta A109E

Registration

N142CF

Category

Helicopter

Engines

2

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Positioning

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Fort Worth → Grand Prairie

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

FTW03LA038

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's attempted running takeoff with the power controls in the improper position.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

After landing on the helipad, the pilot reduced the throttles to flight idle. The pilot was then going to demonstrate to the flight crew how the helicopter could taxi and perform a running takeoff. The pilot initiated the takeoff roll, added collective, and realized the engines were not at 100 percent power. Subsequently, the helicopter became airborne, departed the heliport and came to rest on the roof of a lower level parking garage. In an interview, the pilot reported that "he attempted a rolling take-off...with an incorrect power setting (selection switch) which resulted in an emergency landing on the roof of an adjacent automobile parking garage due to insufficient engine power to maintain flight." The pilot had accumulated approximately 6,500 total helicopter flight hours, with 3,100 flight hours as a flight instructor in helicopters, and 25 total hours in the same make and model as the accident helicopter.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.