Bell 47G N3755Z

Summary

On 11 January 2019 at about 21:40 local time, a Bell 47G registered N3755Z was involved in an accident near Belen, New Mexico, 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

11 January 2019 at 21:40

Classification

Accident

Location

Belen, New Mexico, United States

Coordinates

34.6189, -106.8328

Aircraft

Bell 47G

Registration

N3755Z

Category

Helicopter

Year built

1955

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Belen → Belen

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN19LA067

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's failure to maintain adequate main rotor speed while the helicopter was in an out-of-ground effect hover.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was on a personal flight when he decided to bring the helicopter into an out-of-ground effect hover about 50 ft above the ground. The pilot stated that he "got complacent about maintaining main rotor speed" while in the hover and observed an unsafe main rotor speed. He lowered collective for an immediate landing and engaged the carburetor heat. He attempted to reduce the helicopter's descent rate before impact by increasing the collective control, but the helicopter landed hard on the soft terrain. The main rotor blades subsequently impacted the tailboom and tail rotor. The pilot reported that, after impact, the engine continued to run at about 1,500 rpm. The pilot reported no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot postulated that an insufficient main rotor speed had precluded him from making a normal flare and landing. He stated that the engine might have encountered carburetor icing as he maneuvered the helicopter into the out-of-ground effect hover at a decreased engine power setting, which might have contributed to his failure to maintain adequate main rotor speed while hovering. Regardless of if the helicopter had a partial loss of engine power during the out-of-ground effect hover, which the investigation was unable to determine, the pilot should have been able to maintain proper main rotor speed by lowering collective and discontinuing the hover maneuver before the main rotor decreased to an unsafe speed.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.