# NTSB ATL07CA009: Lawing Thomas R Exec 162-F, N848TL, Aiken, SC, October 14, 2006 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Data collection · Final report - Date: October 14, 2006, 14:58 local (18:58 UTC) - Place: Aiken, SC - Coordinates: 33.642776, -81.684448 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=33.6428&lon=-81.6844&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Takeoff](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/300) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 2 uninjured - Status: Completed, report February 26, 2007 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: Columbia FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 64708 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ATL07CA009 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/64708/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ATL07CA009 ## Probable cause The pilot’s failure to adequately compensate for wind conditions during takeoff which resulted in a loss of tail rotor effectiveness and a roll over during an attempted forced landing. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of control - in flight, takeoff - compensation for wind conditions - inadequate, pilot in command (cause) - weather condition - gusts - loss of tail rotor effectiveness - inadvertent, pilot in command - Forced landing, emergency descent/landing - Roll over, emergency descent/landing ## Analysis The pilot stated "I started to lift off from the Aiken Airport when a tailwind, estimated by a CFI who was nearby, of 20+ mph caught my tail. I lost tail rotor control at [approximately] 10 [feet] off the ground. As N848TL spun around, I lowered the collective and struck the pavement. The helicopter rolled onto the pilot’s side [and] stopped." ## Factual narrative On October 14, 2006, at 1458 eastern daylight time, a Lawing, Thomas R., Exec 162-F, experimental helicopter, N848TL, registered to a private owner, operating as a 14 CFR Part 91, personal flight, collided with the runway during takeoff from the Aiken Municipal Airport in Aiken, South Carolina. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plane was filed. The helicopter received substantial damage. The private pilot and passenger reported no injuries. The flight was originating at the time of the accident. According to the pilot, "I started to lift off from the Aiken Airport when a tailwind, estimated by a CFI who was nearby, of 20+ mph caught my tail. I lost tail rotor control at [approximately] 10 [feet] off the ground. As N848TL spun around, I lowered the collective and struck the pavement. The helicopter rolled onto the pilot’s side [and] stopped. There were many spectators nearby who removed us from the aircraft." Damage to the helicopter consisted of the tail boom, tail rotor, and main rotor. The 1553 surface weather observation at Augusta Regional Airport, Augusta, Georgia, located 21 nautical miles southwest of the crash site was wind 250 degrees at 5 knots, visibility 10 miles, clear of clouds, temperature 66 degrees Fahrenheit, dew point temperature 39 degrees Fahrenheit, and altimeter 30.00. According to an FAA Inspector, the helicopter lost tail rotor effectiveness and landed on the taxiway on its right side causing substantial damage. There were no mechanical problems reported by the pilot or discovered during the post-accident examination of the helicopter. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N848TL](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N848TL-2007-10-01), registration cancelled 2007-10-01, S/N 6544, built 2004 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Lawing Thomas R Exec 162-F - Registry model: [Lawing Thomas R EXEC 162-F](https://openairdocs.org/model/lawing-thomas-r-exec-162-f) (registry code 05617ZG) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Amateur-built UNKNOWN ENG](https://openairdocs.org/engine/amateur-built-unknown-eng) (registry code 99999) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Helicopter, amateur-built - Serial number: 6544 - Airframe hours: 82 - Engines: Rotorway 162-F 150 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Airworthiness certificate: Special, Experimental (Special) - Last inspection: Continuous airworthiness, October 1, 2006, 2 hours before - Departed: AIK, Aiken, SC - Destination: AIK, Aiken, SC ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 57; injuries: none; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 3, with waivers/limitations; last flight review June 1, 2005; seat: right; flight hours: 900 total, 97 in this make and model, 15 in the last 90 days, 5 in the last 30 days, 2 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 250° at 5 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 66 °F, dew point 39 °F - Altimeter: 30.00 inHg - Observed at: AGS ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20061014023809A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20061014023809A), Oct 14, 2006: Amtr EXEC162F, Aiken, SC, Substantial damage. (-23) During takeoff, a loss of tail rotor effectiveness was experienced. Rotorcraft landed on the taxiway on its right side. No injuries to pilot or… 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. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.