20071021830859I

Incident · Minor damage

FAA incident report · Bolkms BK 117 A-3 · Kokomo, IN · October 21, 2007

Date
October 21, 2007 · 12:52 local
Place
Kokomo, IN
Airport
Kokomo Municipal
Phase of flight
Pwr On Vertical Ldng/Rtrcrft
Operating rules
Air taxi and commuter (Part 135)
Operator
RMXA
Damage
Minor damage
Aircraft
N112LL
Reported as
Bolkms BK117A3
Reported engine
Lycoming LTS101*
People aboard
3
Fatal injuries
0
Pilot’s flight hours
6,638 total15 in this make and model33 in the last 90 days

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) After landing in order to upload fuel from a fueling area on the okk ramp, the aircraft had to maneuver in gusty wind conditions up to 28 knots. After the aircraft touched down near the fueling area, the pilot reduced power on the collective and relieved pressure on the cyclic and as the rotor blades lost lift, the rotor blades dropped in the vertical plane and came into contact with a vertical fuel pipe in the fueling area. Each of the four main rotor blades sustained damage. A preliminary assessment of the engine determined that damage was limited to rotor blades.

As the FAA filed it

(-23) AFTER LANDING IN ORDER TO UPLOAD FUEL FROM A FUELING AREA ON THE OKK RAMP, THE AIRCRAFT HAD TO MANEUVER IN GUSTY WIND CONDITIONS UP TO 28 KNOTS. AFTER THE AIRCRAFT TOUCHED DOWN NEAR THE FUELING AREA, THE PILOT REDUCED POWER ON THE COLLECTIVE AND RELIEVED PRESSURE ON THE CYCLIC AND AS THE ROTOR BLADES LOST LIFT, THE ROTOR BLADES DROPPED IN THE VERTICAL PLANE AND CAME INTO CONTACT WITH A VERTICAL FUEL PIPE IN THE FUELING AREA. EACH OF THE FOUR MAIN ROTOR BLADES SUSTAINED DAMAGE. A PRELIMINARY ASSESSMENT OF THE ENGINE DETERMINED THAT DAMAGE WAS LIMITED TO ROTOR BLADES.