Willey ROTORWAY EXEC 90 N5251B

Summary

On 8 March 2008 at about 20:00 local time, a Willey ROTORWAY EXEC 90 registered N5251B was involved in an accident near Westport, Oklahoma, 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

8 March 2008 at 20:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Westport, Oklahoma, United States

Coordinates

36.2222, -96.3444

Aircraft

Willey ROTORWAY EXEC 90

Registration

N5251B

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Cleveland → Westport

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

DFW08CA079

Nobody was injured.

An unsuccessful precautionary landing due to an electrical system malfunction.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The certified flight instructor and the student pilot were on an instructional flight to practice autorotations and simulated engine failures. About 45 minutes into the flight the instructor noticed the engine tachometer read lower than the rotor tachometer. The student pilot checked the battery voltage and said that it was "low". The instructor reported that the engine's fuel pump and ignition systems were not independent and he did not want to risk a downwind autorotation landing. When the instructor saw the rotor tachometer drop to 90 percent, he initiated an autorotation, assuming the helicopter had or was about to lose engine power. During the landing the left skid sank into the soft terrain and the helicopter subsequently rolled on to its side. The helicopter sustained substantial damage during the precautionary landing.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.