20100822043339I

Incident · Minor damage

FAA incident report · Bell 47G · Highland Townsh, MI · August 22, 2010

Date: August 22, 2010 · 16:45 local
Place: Highland Townsh, MI
Phase of flight: Takeoff: Rotation
Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
Damage: Minor damage
Aircraft: N125MR
Reported as: Bell 47G
Reported engine: Franklin 6A4200 series
People aboard: 3
Fatal injuries: 0
Other injuries: 0
Pilot’s certificate: Private pilot
Pilot’s flight hours: 2,500 total1,200 in this make and model6 in the last 90 days

N125MRRegistered now · Bell 47GS/N 687 · Built 1957 Airframe modelBell 47G Engine modelFranklin 6A4200 seriesReciprocating

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.

The pilot lost control of the helicopter while taking off from a confined area, between two occupied dwellings. The tail rotor struck the water and the aircraft came to rest near an embankment, in approximately three feet of water. All three occupants evacuated the aircraft, and moved the short distance to shore. No injuries reported.

As the FAA filed it

THE PILOT LOST CONTROL OF THE HELICOPTER WHILE TAKING OFF FROM A CONFINED AREA, BETWEEN TWO OCCUPIED DWELLINGS. THE TAIL ROTOR STRUCK THE WATER AND THE AIRCRAFT CAME TO REST NEAR AN EMBANKMENT, IN APPROXIMATELY THREE FEET OF WATER. ALL THREE OCCUPANTS EVACUATED THE AIRCRAFT, AND MOVED THE SHORT DISTANCE TO SHORE. NO INJURIES REPORTED.