20170921022479A

Accident · Substantial damage

FAA accident report · Godwin Jeff E Safari · Fayetteville, NC · September 21, 2017

Date
September 21, 2017 · 18:58 local
Place
Fayetteville, NC
Airport
Fayetteville Regional
Phase of flight
Other, Specify
Operating rules
General operating rules (Part 91)
Damage
Substantial damage
Aircraft
N609DB
Reported as
Godwin Jeff E Safari
Reported engine
Lycoming 0-360-A1D
People aboard
1
Fatal injuries
0
Other injuries
1
Pilot’s certificate
Private pilot
Pilot’s flight hours
2,300 total30 in this make and model

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.

Pilot was practicing copter hovering and pedal turns on FBO ramp. During last pedal turn and landing prior to accident, copter landed hard on right rear skid with tail rotor guard either striking or nearly striking pavement before copter settled down on both skids. The next pull of the collective seemed rather abrupt and copter briefly lifted vertical then rolled right with main rotors striking pavement and copter skidding on then settling on its RH side. Debris from the crash sequence struck an FBO fuel truck resulting in minor damage to the truck. FBO provided video of entire accident sequence.

As the FAA filed it

PILOT WAS PRACTICING COPTER HOVERING AND PEDAL TURNS ON FBO RAMP. DURING LAST PEDAL TURN AND LANDING PRIOR TO ACCIDENT, COPTER LANDED HARD ON RIGHT REAR SKID WITH TAIL ROTOR GUARD EITHER STRIKING OR NEARLY STRIKING PAVEMENT BEFORE COPTER SETTLED DOWN ON BOTH SKIDS. THE NEXT PULL OF THE COLLECTIVE SEEMED RATHER ABRUPT AND COPTER BRIEFLY LIFTED VERTICAL THEN ROLLED RIGHT WITH MAIN ROTORS STRIKING PAVEMENT AND COPTER SKIDDING ON THEN SETTLING ON ITS RH SIDE. DEBRIS FROM THE CRASH SEQUENCE STRUCK AN FBO FUEL TRUCK RESULTING IN MINOR DAMAGE TO THE TRUCK. FBO PROVIDED VIDEO OF ENTIRE ACCIDENT SEQUENCE.