# Accident 20000818041089A: Robsin R22BETA, Watsonville, CA, August 18, 2000

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: August 18, 2000, 17:55 local time
- Place: Watsonville, CA
- Damage: No damage
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 36.8956° N, 121.7942° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=36.8956&lon=-121.7942&mi=10
- Aircraft: N8313Z, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N8313Z-2001-02-10) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Robinson Helicopter R22 BETA (registry code 7640110, https://openairdocs.org/model/robinson-helicopter-r22-beta) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: ROBSIN R22BETA
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 2
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX00FA306](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX00FA306) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20000818041089A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

(-23)THE MAIN ROTOR HEAD SEPARATED DURING CRUISE FLIGHT. AFTER SEPARATION, THE MAIN ROTOR BLADES PENETRATED THE COCKPIT.  THE HELICOPTER THEN BEGAN AN UNCONTROLLED DESCENT INTO A PLOWED FIELD AND BURNED.  WRECKAGE DEBRIS WAS FOUND 470 FEET NORHT OF THE MAIN WRECKAGE.  MAIN ROTORS SYSYEM (INCLUDING BOTH BLADES AND MAIN ROTOR HEAD, ALL STILL ATTACHED) WAS FOUND 220 FEET FROM THE MAIN WRECKAGE.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB LAX00FA306](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX00FA306), Aug 19, 2000: Robinson R22 Beta (N8313Z), Watsonville, CA, destroyed, 2 fatal. Probable cause: The divergence of the main rotor from its normal plane of rotation for an undetermined reason, which resulted in mast bumping and rotor contact with the fuselage.

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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