20160603009529I

Incident · Minor damage

FAA incident report · Bell Helicopter Textron Canada 429 · Ft. Worth, TX · June 3, 2016

Date: June 3, 2016 · 17:24 local
Place: Ft. Worth, TX
Phase of flight: Other, Specify
Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
Damage: Minor damage
Aircraft: N429BH
Reported as: Bell Helicopter Textron Canada 429
Reported engine: Pratt & Whitney Canada PW207D1
People aboard: 2
Fatal injuries: 0
Other injuries: 0
Pilot’s certificates: Airline transport, commercial pilot, flight instructor
Pilot’s flight hours: 5,300 total195 in this make and model35 in the last 90 days

N429BHRegistered now · Bell Helicopter Textron Canada 429S/N 57005 · Built 2010 Airframe modelBell Helicopter Textron Canada 429 Engine modelPratt & Whitney Canada PW207D1/D2Turbo-shaft

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.

Instructor pilot and customer pilot performing recurrent training maneuvers. The instructor pilot demonstrated autorotation manuevers followed by repetitions by the customer pilot (no full touchdowns). Previously performed four straight in autorotations with no issues, then performed three 180 degree autorotations (customer pilot flying). On fourth 180 autorotation with customer pilot flying neither pilot noticed the throttles were still in idle during the manuever. When the aircraft was flared the nose dropped and the pilots made a run on landing, skidding approx 25 feet. On egress of the aircraft they noticed the main rotor had contacted the tail rotor drive shaft and cover and the aft cross tube was splayed wider than normal.

As the FAA filed it

INSTRUCTOR PILOT AND CUSTOMER PILOT PERFORMING RECURRENT TRAINING MANEUVERS. THE INSTRUCTOR PILOT DEMONSTRATED AUTOROTATION MANUEVERS FOLLOWED BY REPETITIONS BY THE CUSTOMER PILOT (NO FULL TOUCHDOWNS). PREVIOUSLY PERFORMED FOUR STRAIGHT IN AUTOROTATIONS WITH NO ISSUES, THEN PERFORMED THREE 180 DEGREE AUTOROTATIONS (CUSTOMER PILOT FLYING). ON FOURTH 180 AUTOROTATION WITH CUSTOMER PILOT FLYING NEITHER PILOT NOTICED THE THROTTLES WERE STILL IN IDLE DURING THE MANUEVER. WHEN THE AIRCRAFT WAS FLARED THE NOSE DROPPED AND THE PILOTS MADE A RUN ON LANDING, SKIDDING APPROX 25 FEET. ON EGRESS OF THE AIRCRAFT THEY NOTICED THE MAIN ROTOR HAD CONTACTED THE TAIL ROTOR DRIVE SHAFT AND COVER AND THE AFT CROSS TUBE WAS SPLAYED WIDER THAN NORMAL.