Robinson R22 N333PJ

Summary

On 30 January 2013 at about 22:00 local time, a Robinson R22 registered N333PJ, operated by Hawaii Pacific Aviation Inc., was involved in an accident near Kona, Hawaii, 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

30 January 2013 at 22:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Kona, Hawaii, United States

Coordinates

19.6307, -155.9903

Aircraft

Robinson R22

Registration

N333PJ

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Hawaii Pacific Aviation Inc.

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Kona → Kona

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR13CA107

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s failure to maintain adequate main rotor rpm during a practice autorotation and the flight instructor's delayed action, 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 pilot was practicing an autorotation when the main rotor rpm decayed. The flight instructor took control of the helicopter and attempted to correct the low main rotor rpm. However, the helicopter landed hard in a nose-high attitude, which resulted in structural damage to the tailboom. The pilot reported no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.