# Accident 20200906019539A: Robinson Helicopter Company R22 MARINER, Fort Myers, FL, September 6, 2020

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: September 6, 2020, 09:00 local time
- Place: Fort Myers, FL
- Airport: Page Field
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Ground/Ramp/Ma
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 26.5867° N, 81.8633° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=26.5867&lon=-81.8633&mi=10
- Aircraft: N194HC, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N194HC) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Robinson Helicopter R22 MARINER (registry code 7640115, https://openairdocs.org/model/robinson-helicopter-r22-mariner) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming 0-320 series (registry code 41508, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-320-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: ROBINSON HELICOPTER COMPANY R22 MARINER
- Reported engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 0
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ERA20LA310](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA20LA310) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20200906019539A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

ON 06-SEPT-2020, N194HC, A 1991 ROBINSON R22 MARINER HELICOPTER, S/N 1955M WAS INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT AT PAGE FIELD (FMY) FORT MYERS, FLORIDA.  THE TWO POB WERE A COMMERCIAL RATED INSTRUCTOR AND HIS ATP RATED STUDENT, AND NEITHER WERE INJURED.  THE CREW REPORTED PERFORMING A PREFLIGHT INSPECTION IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE RFM AND FOUND NO DISCREPANCIES.  THEY STARTED THE ENGINE AND WERE COMPLETING THE INTERIOR PREFLIGHT CHECKS WHEN THEY STARTED TO APPLY POWER TO THE ENGINE AND HEARD A LOUD ?BOOM?.  WHILE TRYING TO FIND THE SOURCE OF THE NOISE, THE STUDENT OPENED HIS DOOR AND REPORTED THAT THE ?TAIL WAS HANGING OFF THE BACK OF THE HELICOPTER?, SO THEY IMMEDIATELY SHUT DOWN THE ENGINE.  THE HELICOPTER NEVER LEFT THE GROUND, BUT IT WAS AN INTENDED FLIGHT SO IT IS CLASSIFIED AS AN ACCIDENT.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB ERA20LA310](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA20LA310), Sep 6, 2020: Robinson R22 (N194HC), Fort Myers, FL, substantial damage. Probable cause: Foreign object damage of the turning tailrotor by a soft-bodied object, which resulted in the sudden stoppage of the tailrotor and the catastrophic failure of the tailrotor assembly and its mount…

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft 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. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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