Eurocopter AS 350 B3 N341HP

Summary

On 1 March 2012 at about 01:15 local time, a Eurocopter AS 350 B3 registered N341HP, operated by California Highway Patrol, was involved in an accident near Napa, California, 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

1 March 2012 at 01:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Napa, California, United States

Nearest airport

Napa County Airport (KAPC)

Coordinates

38.2078, -122.2750

Aircraft

Eurocopter AS 350 B3

Registration

N341HP

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

California Highway Patrol

Operating rule

Public Use

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Napa → Napa

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR12TA120

Nobody was injured.

The flight instructor’s improper use of the collective control during a practice hovering autorotation, which resulted in a hard landing.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The flight instructor reported that while hovering about 3 feet above the ground, he performed an autorotation demonstration for the second pilot. Although the flight instructor raised the collective to arrest the descent before landing, the helicopter made a firm landing, which resulted in substantial damage to the tailboom. The flight instructor reported no preimpact mechanical malfunction or failure that would have precluded normal operation. The Federal Aviation Administration’s helicopter flying handbook identifies the proper techniques for practice autorotation maneuvers from altitude and indicates that one of the common errors that can occur during hovering autorotations is the pilot’s failure to apply up-collective pitch properly, which can result in a hard landing.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.