20200912020889A

Accident · Substantial damage

FAA accident report · Robinson Helicopter R44 II · Willow, AK · September 12, 2020

FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal NTSB investigation search

Date: September 12, 2020 · 17:30 local
Place: Willow, AK
Airport: Willow Lake
Phase of flight: Landing: Approach
Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
Damage: Substantial damage
Aircraft: N537BC
Reported as: Robinson Helicopter R44 II
People aboard: 1
Fatal injuries: 0
Other injuries: 0
Pilot’s certificate: Private pilot
Pilot’s flight hours: 575 total556 in this make and model6 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.

Pilot landed at personal pad lakeside on Willow Lake to drop off passenger. Pilot then relocated to adjacent airport to refuel and return. During return arrival, pilot allowed gusty wind conditions to overtake his directional skills, in the process drifting aft in prevailing wind and put m/r blade into spruce tree. Blades severed top half of tree, blades remained intact and a/c settled hard onto pad, breaking front of left skid toe, with top of tree falling through canopy. Normal shutdown performed with no injuries.

As the FAA filed it

PILOT LANDED AT PERSONAL PAD LAKESIDE ON WILLOW LAKE TO DROP OFF PASSENGER. PILOT THEN RELOCATED TO ADJACENT AIRPORT TO REFUEL AND RETURN. DURING RETURN ARRIVAL, PILOT ALLOWED GUSTY WIND CONDITIONS TO OVERTAKE HIS DIRECTIONAL SKILLS, IN THE PROCESS DRIFTING AFT IN PREVAILING WIND AND PUT M/R BLADE INTO SPRUCE TREE. BLADES SEVERED TOP HALF OF TREE, BLADES REMAINED INTACT AND A/C SETTLED HARD ONTO PAD, BREAKING FRONT OF LEFT SKID TOE, WITH TOP OF TREE FALLING THROUGH CANOPY. NORMAL SHUTDOWN PERFORMED WITH NO INJURIES.