# Accident 20021226037469A: Bolkms BK117A4, Albany, NY, December 26, 2002

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: December 26, 2002
- Place: Albany, NY
- Airport: Amch Heliport
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Starting Engines
- Operating rules: Air taxi and commuter (Part 135)
- Operator: R7MA
- Location: 42.6517° N, 73.7786° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=42.6517&lon=-73.7786&mi=10
- Aircraft: N951AM (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: BOLKMS BK117A4
- Pilot flight hours: 1,583 total, 450 in this make and model, 96 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB NYC03LA033](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC03LA033) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20021226037469A

## Narrative

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

(-23) DURING ENGINE START THE ROTOR BLADES WERE FLEXING FROM THE WIND. AS THE ROTOR STARTED TO TURN, ONE BLADE STRUCK THE LEFT VERTICAL STABILIZER, CAUSING THE BLADE TO FRACTURE AND SEPARATE. THE ROTOR CONTINUED TO ROTATE AND BY THE THIRD REVOLUTION, THE BLADE HAD HIT BOTH VERTICAL STAB'S, THE TAIL BOOM AND THE LEFT ENGINE EXHAUST DUCT.

## 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 NYC03LA033](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC03LA033), Dec 26, 2002: MBB BK 117 A-4 (N951AM), Albany, NY, substantial damage. Probable cause: The inadvertent encounter with a downdraft during engine start, which flexed the main rotor blades and subsequently damaged the tail boom assembly. A factor related to the accident was the failure of…

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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