Airbus EC 130 T2 N130TG

Summary

On 3 August 2018 at about 21:30 local time, a Airbus EC 130 T2 registered N130TG was involved in an accident near Mullen, Nebraska, United States. 2 people were on board and one was seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

3 August 2018 at 21:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Mullen, Nebraska, United States

Coordinates

41.8611, -101.2894

Aircraft

Airbus EC 130 T2

Registration

N130TG

Category

Helicopter

Year built

2016

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Aliance → Mullen

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN18LA314

1 person was seriously injured.

The pilot’s inadequate and incorrect antitorque pedal application during a tight, decelerating turn downwind, which resulted in a loss of yaw control.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The private pilot reported that he was approaching a golf course to survey a potential landing area when, during a left turn, the helicopter experienced a loss of tail rotor effectiveness. He stated that he added right pedal and eventually full right pedal to counter the rotation without success. The helicopter impacted the ground, which resulted in substantial damage to the main rotor and fuselage. Parametric data recovered from an onboard recorder showed that the left turn tightened in radius and that both the groundspeed and airspeed decreased during the turn. The left yaw rate increased rapidly as the helicopter entered the downwind portion of the turn. The cockpit image recorder captured the pilot applying a slight right pedal input during the onset of the left yaw, followed by his improper left pedal input that remained until ground impact. There was no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or failures with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation. The left yaw would likely have been arrested had the pilot applied adequate and correct antitorque pedal when the yaw first started.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.