Bell OH-58A N244RP

Summary

On 29 June 2005 at about 16:42 local time, a Bell OH-58A registered N244RP, operated by St. Johns County Sheriff's Office, was involved in an accident near St. Augustine, Florida, United States. 2 people were on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

29 June 2005 at 16:42

Classification

Accident

Location

St. Augustine, Florida, United States

Coordinates

29.9397, -81.3386

Aircraft

Bell OH-58A

Registration

N244RP

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

St. Johns County Sheriff's Office

Operating rule

Public Use

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

St. Augustine → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

MIA05TA124

1 person had minor injuries.

The failure of the compressor section of the engine for undetermined reasons resulting in the total loss of engine power during the initial climb. A factor in the accident was the operator's use of a confined area for takeoff during non-emergency or routine situations.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The purpose of the flight was to reposition the helicopter to a high school for a static display. After takeoff from a confined area consisting of an immediately adjacent building, antenna, and a parking lot with numerous cars, the pilot executed a pedal turn to depart over the parking lot. During climb out while flying between 35 to 40 feet agl, and between 30 to 35 knots, he heard a "bang" and the helicopter yawed to the right. He later stated the right yaw may have been due to his over correction. He lowered the collective and turned left in an attempt to land on grass at the edge of the parking lot. He pulled collective to clear vehicles below and as a result, the helicopter impacted the ground hard; the main rotor blades collided with several vehicles. Examination of the helicopter revealed no discrepancies with the tail rotor drive system. The main drive shaft was fractured at both ends; no evidence of preexisting cracks were noted. Examination of the engine revealed leading and trailing edge damage to the first and second stage compressor blades, while the 3rd, 4th, and 5th stage compressor blades were fractured near the blade root. No evidence of preexisting cracking was noted on any of the fractured compressor blades.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.