What happened
The FAA’s narrative, in sentence case. The FAA writes it in capitals and removes private details.
The pilot refueled with a 25-gallon top-off before the flights for the day. The helicopter was flying back to its originating airport when the pilot chose an enroute airport as a location to land to let a weather system pass. Three hundred feet into the helicopter’s descent to the airport through cloudy IFR conditions, the aircraft banked right and accelerated downward in a clockwise rotation, altering its course from approximately 130 degrees to 40 degrees. The aircraft’s main rotor blades contacted the ground at the edge of a cornfield, breaking apart and sending blade spar and privacy data omitted as FAR as 1,000 feet to the end of the runway. The passenger was ejected from the aircraft upon crashingprivacy data omitted. The pilot remained in the cockpit as the fuselage hit the ground nose-first, rolled on its left side and slid across one set of railroad tracks, and coming to rest against a parked train car. A fire developed that consumed the fuselage but spared the engine, rotor mast, tail boom, and tail rotor. Investigators from Robinson and rolls-royce found no mechanical defects evident prior to the crash pertaining to the surviving turbine engine, mast assembly, tail boom, or tail rotor.
As the FAA filed it
THE PILOT REFUELED WITH A 25-GALLON TOP-OFF BEFORE THE FLIGHTS FOR THE DAY. THE HELICOPTER WAS FLYING BACK TO ITS ORIGINATING AIRPORT WHEN THE PILOT CHOSE AN ENROUTE AIRPORT AS A LOCATION TO LAND TO LET A WEATHER SYSTEM PASS. THREE HUNDRED FEET INTO THE HELICOPTER’S DESCENT TO THE AIRPORT THROUGH CLOUDY IFR CONDITIONS, THE AIRCRAFT BANKED RIGHT AND ACCELERATED DOWNWARD IN A CLOCKWISE ROTATION, ALTERING ITS COURSE FROM APPROXIMATELY 130 DEGREES TO 40 DEGREES. THE AIRCRAFT’S MAIN ROTOR BLADES CONTACTED THE GROUND AT THE EDGE OF A CORNFIELD, BREAKING APART AND SENDING BLADE SPAR AND ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ AS FAR AS 1,000 FEET TO THE END OF THE RUNWAY. THE PASSENGER WAS EJECTED FROM THE AIRCRAFT UPON CRASHING^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. THE PILOT REMAINED IN THE COCKPIT AS THE FUSELAGE HIT THE GROUND NOSE-FIRST, ROLLED ON ITS LEFT SIDE AND SLID ACROSS ONE SET OF RAILROAD TRACKS, AND COMING TO REST AGAINST A PARKED TRAIN CAR. A FIRE DEVELOPED THAT CONSUMED THE FUSELAGE BUT SPARED THE ENGINE, ROTOR MAST, TAIL BOOM, AND TAIL ROTOR. INVESTIGATORS FROM ROBINSON AND ROLLS-ROYCE FOUND NO MECHANICAL DEFECTS EVIDENT PRIOR TO THE CRASH PERTAINING TO THE SURVIVING TURBINE ENGINE, MAST ASSEMBLY, TAIL BOOM, OR TAIL ROTOR.
NTSB investigation
The NTSB’s investigation of this event, with its probable cause and findings. Matched to this report by N-number and date.