Robinson R22 BETA N453SH

Summary

On 19 February 2007 at about 17:55 local time, a Robinson R22 BETA registered N453SH, operated by Silver State Helicopters, was involved in an accident near Tucson, Arizona, 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

19 February 2007 at 17:55

Classification

Accident

Location

Tucson, Arizona, United States

Coordinates

32.1502, -110.9307

Aircraft

Robinson R22 BETA

Registration

N453SH

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Silver State Helicopters

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Tucson → Tucson

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX07CA090

Nobody was injured.

The failure of the student pilot to maintain an adequate main rotor rpm and the instructor’s failure to maintain control of the aircraft.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

While performing a simulated emergency landing during a Part 91 instructional flight, the helicopter touched down hard on open desert terrain, and a main rotor blade impacted the tail boom. The certified flight instructor was teaching his rotorcraft rated private pilot student to land under a simulated emergency condition where the objective was for the student to "land immediately." As the helicopter descended, the low rotor annunciator light illuminated and the corresponding warning horn sounded. Thereafter, the instructor attempted to perform a recovery. According to the instructor, initially both he and his student were simultaneously attempting to take corrective action and the student "had too strong a grip on the throttle for me to overcome." The instructor was handling the controls as the rotorcraft approached and contacted the ground. The instructor stated that despite his efforts, the helicopter touched down hard. No mechanical malfunctions were experienced during the flight.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.