# Accident 20001003018249A: Amtr MINI500, Tuscaloosa, AL, October 3, 2000 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: October 3, 2000, 08:56 local time - Place: Tuscaloosa, AL - Airport: Tuscaloosa Municipal - Damage: Destroyed - Phase of flight: Normal Cruise - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 33.2206° N, 87.6114° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs at Tuscaloosa National Airport (TCL), within about a mile (OpenAirDocs) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=33.2206&lon=-87.6114&mi=10 - Aircraft: N6165T, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N6165T-2001-05-01) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: University Ala FLT Dynmics Lab MINI 500 (registry code 05607CV, https://openairdocs.org/model/university-ala-flt-dynmics-lab-mini-500) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: AMTR MINI500 - Reported engine: ROTAX ROTAX582 - People aboard: 1 - Fatal injuries: 1 - Pilot flight hours: 2,700 total - NTSB investigation: [NTSB ATL01LA003](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ATL01LA003) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20001003018249A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. (-23) ON OCTOBER 3, 2000, AT 0856 CDT, A UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA MINI 500 EXPERIMENTAL HELICOPTER, N6165T, COLLIDED WITH THE GROUND AT THE TUSCALOOSA MUNICIPAL AIRPORT, TUSCALOOSA, ALABAMA. THE HELICOPTER WAS OPERATED BY THE AIRLINE TRANSPORT PILOT, WITH COMMERCIAL HELICOPTER PRIVILEGES, UNDER 14 CFR PART 91, AND VISUAL FLIGHT RULES. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AND NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED. THE PILOT RECEIVED FATAL INJURIES AND THE HELICOPTER WAS DESTROYED BY IMPACT AND THE POST CRASH FIRE. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED AT THE TUSCALOOSA AIRPORT AT 0840 CDT. ACCORDING TO THE TOWER OPERATOR, ^PRIVACY DAT^,THE AIRCRAFT HAD COMPLETED 3 OR 4 CIRCUITS IN CLOSED TRAFFIC TO TAXIWAY GOLF.WHILE ON THE DOWNWIND LEG, IT APPEARED THE HELICOPTER HAD A SUDDEN LOSS OF POWER AND BEGAN TO DESCEND. NO COMMUNICATIONS WERE RECEIVED BY THE TOWER AND THE HELICOPTERS ROTOR RPM DECREASED AND APPEARED TO STOP BEFORE IMPACT. CRASH TRUCKS WERE ON THE SCENE AND THE POST CRASH FIRE WAS EXTINGUISED WITHIN MINUTES. (.4) ON OCTOBER 3, 2000, AT 0956 EASTERN DAYLIGHT TIME, A UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA MINI-500 EXPERIMENTAL HELICOPTER, N6165T, COLLIDED WITH THE GROUND WHILE ON APPROACH TO THE TUSCALOOSA MUNICIPAL AIRPORT, IN TUSCALOOSA, ALABAMA. THE HELICOPTER WAS OPERATED BY THE COMMERCIAL PILOT UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF TITLE 14, CFR PART 91, AND VISUAL FLIGHT RULES. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AND NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED FOR THE LOCAL FLIGHT. THE PILOT RECEIVED FATAL INJURIES AND THE HELICOPTER WAS DESTROYED BY IMPACT AND THE SUBSEQUENT POST-CRASH FIRE. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED FROM THE TUSCALOOSA, MUNICIPAL AIRPORT, AT AN UNDETERMINED TIME. ACCORDING TO THE AIRPORT CONTROL TOWER OPERATOR, THE HELICOPTER HAD COMPLETED THREE TO FOUR CIRCUITS IN CLOSED TRAFFIC TO TAXIWAY GOLF. WHILE ON THE DOWNWIND LEG, THE CONTROLLER BELIEVED THAT THE HELICOPTER HAD A SUDDEN LOSS OF ENGINE POWER AND BEGAN TO DESCEND. THE TOWER RECEIVED NO COMMUNICATIONS AND THE HELICOPTERS ROTOR RPM DECREASED AND APPEARED TO STOP BEFORE IMPACT. CRASH FIRE RESCUE TRUCKS WERE ON THE SCENE AND THE POST-CRASH FIRE WAS EXTINGUISHED WITHIN MINUTES. THE PILOT HELD AN AIRLINE TRANSPORT PILOT CERTIFICATE FOR SINGLE ENGINE LAND AIRPLANE, AND A COMMERCIAL CERTIFICATE FOR SINGLE ENGINE SEA AIRPLANE, MULTIENGINE LAND AIRPLANE AND HELICOPTER. HE ALSO HELD A FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR CERTIFICATE FOR AIRPLANE SINGLE AND MULTIENGINE INSTRUMENT AIRPLANES. THE PILOT ALSO HELD A REPAIRMAN EXPERIMENTAL AIRCRAFT BUILDER CERTIFICATE. HIS LAST MEDICAL CERTIFICATE, A SECOND CLASS, WAS ISSUED ON JULY 26, 1999. IT HELD THE LIMITATION THAT THE PILOT MUST WEAR CORRECTIVE LENSES IN ORDER TO EXERCISE THE PRIVILEGES OF THE AIRMAN'S CERTIFICATE. THE PILOT REPORTED ON HIS LAST MEDICAL THAT HIS TOTAL CIVILIAN FLIGHT HOURS WERE 2,700. THE HELICOPTER WAS ASSEMBLED AND INSPECTED ON APRIL 4, 2000, AND HAD ACCUMULATED A TOTAL TIME OF 16 HOURS OF FLIGHT TIME AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT. ACCORDING TO THE AIRCRAFT LOGBOOK, ON SEPTEMBER 28, 2000, THE PILOT HAD MODIFIED THE HELICOPTERS HORIZONTAL STABILIZER BY CUTTING OFF PART OF THE STABILIZER BEHIND MOUNTING PLATES NUMBER 88 AND NUMBER 98, AND REMOVED THE WINGLETS. THE PILOT FLEW 10 TRAFFIC PATTERNS IN NEW CONFIGURATION. HE NOTED IN THE LOGBOOK "LESS OBJECTIONABLE SIDE TO SIDE SHAKING, BUT BALANCE INDICATES VERTICAL 1.5 IPS IN CLIMB." HOWEVER, ACCORDING TO THE FAA, THIS MODIFICATION WAS WAS NOT APPROVED AS REQUIRED BY THE EXPERIMENTAL AIRCRAFT OPERATING LIMITATIONS. ADDITIONALLY, THE HELICOPTER WAS POWERED BY A ROTAX 582 ENGINE. IN THE ENGINE OPERATOR'S MANUAL UNDER SECTION 9, ENTITLED DANGER! STATES IN PART THAT "THIS ENGINE, BY ITS DESIGN, IS SUBJECT TO SUDDEN STOPPAGE! ENGINE STOPPAGE CAN RESULT IN CRASH LANDINGS. SUCH CRASH LANDINGS CAN LEAD TO SERIOUS BODILY INJURY OR DEATH." A TOXICOLOGY EXAMINATION WAS PERFORMED BY THE FAA'S TOXICOLOGICAL AND ACCIDENT RESEARCH LABORATORY. THERE WAS NO CARBON MONOXIDE, CYANIDE, ETHANOL OR DRUGS DETECTED IN THE BLOOD OR VITREOUS. AN NTSB PILOT/OPERATOR REPORT WAS SENT ON OCTOBER 11, 2000, TO THE UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AND RECEIVED ON OCTOBER 16, 2000, BUT WAS NOT COMPLETED AND RETURNED AT THE TIME OF THIS REPORT. ## 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 ATL01LA003](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ATL01LA003), Oct 3, 2000: University of Alabama MINI-500 (N6165T), Tuscaloosa, AL, destroyed, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The loss of engine power for undetermined reasons, and the pilot's unapproved airframe modification that resulted in the loss of flight control during the emergency descent. 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. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.