20050924021629I

Incident · Minor damage

FAA incident report · Amtr EXEC 162F · Chapin, SC · September 24, 2005

Date: September 24, 2005 · 10:45 local
Place: Chapin, SC
Phase of flight: Pwr On Vertical Ldng/Rtrcrft
Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
Damage: Minor damage
Aircraft: N29341
Reported as: Amtr EXEC162F
Fatal injuries: 0
Pilot’s certificate: Student
Pilot’s flight hours: 55 total55 in this make and model5 in the last 90 days

N29341Registered now · Derrick B A/Derrick JB EXEC 162FS/N 6689 Airframe modelDerrick B A/Derrick JB EXEC 162F Engine modelAmateur-built UNKNOWN ENG

From the FAA’s Accident/Incident Data System (AIDS), through its Aviation Safety Information Portal, as reported. The NTSB investigates accidents separately, and its record of an accident is the fuller one. The aircraft is matched to the registry 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.

What happened

The FAA’s narrative, in sentence case. The FAA writes it in capitals and removes private details.

(-23) The helicopter lost power while in cruise flight at 1000' AGL and the student pilot privacy data omitted landed hard in the center of Chapin, SC high school football field collapsing the landing skids of the helicopter. Minor injuries to passenger's privacy data omitted wife ^privac^. After further investigation it was determined the a/c lost rotor speed due to the fact that privacy data omitted slipped her left arm out of her shoulder strap to be able to reach forward to make a GPS range adjustment. As she slipped her arm out of the left shoulder strap, the strap caught the idler pully/clutch t handle (located between the two seats at shoulder height) when she leaned forward this caused the rotor to become disengaged by pulling the t handle forward. Thus disengaging the clutch.

As the FAA filed it

(-23) THE HELICOPTER LOST POWER WHILE IN CRUISE FLIGHT AT 1000' AGL AND THE STUDENT PILOT ^PRIVACY DATA^ LANDED HARD IN THE CENTER OF CHAPIN, SC HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL FIELD COLLAPSING THE LANDING SKIDS OF THE HELICOPTER. MINOR INJURIES TO PASSENGER'S ^PRIVACY DATA^ WIFE ^PRIVAC^. AFTER FURTHER INVESTIGATION IT WAS DETERMINED THE A/C LOST ROTOR SPEED DUE TO THE FACT THAT ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ SLIPPED HER LEFT ARM OUT OF HER SHOULDER STRAP TO BE ABLE TO REACH FORWARD TO MAKE A GPS RANGE ADJUSTMENT. AS SHE SLIPPED HER ARM OUT OF THE LEFT SHOULDER STRAP, THE STRAP CAUGHT THE IDLER PULLY/CLUTCH T HANDLE (LOCATED BETWEEN THE TWO SEATS AT SHOULDER HEIGHT) WHEN SHE LEANED FORWARD THIS CAUSED THE ROTOR TO BECOME DISENGAGED BY PULLING THE T HANDLE FORWARD. THUS DISENGAGING THE CLUTCH.