- Date
- November 25, 1989, 11:00 local (17:00 UTC)
- Place
- Ewell, AL
- Injuries
- 2 serious
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N1358XBell 47G-3B1
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 26, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19891125046619A
- Case key
- 8183
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The loss of engine power, for undetermined reasons, at low altitude during a practice autorotation. Contributing to the accident was the instructor's failure to properly plan the demonstrated autorotation so as to preclude an accident, in the event that power was not available.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The private rated pilot had attempted a practice 180 degree autorotation. It was aborted by the instructor because of improper line up by the pilot under instruction. A second autorotation was attempted by the instructor to demonstrate correct procedure. The instructor reported that the engine did not respond to an attempted power recovery. He added collective pitch to avoid trees and reached an open field with low rotor RPM. The helicopter impacted hard & was substantially damaged. Later examination of the engine did not reveal any discrepancies which accounted for the reported loss of power.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N1358X
- Reported as
- Bell 47G-3B1
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 6569
- Airframe hours
- 3,717
- Engine
- Lycoming TVO-435-B1B, 270 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Bill Williams
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · May 17, 1989
- Departed
- 71J · Ozark, AL
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 44
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter, Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 2,853 total · 48 in this make and model · 2,784 as pilot in command · 97 in the last 90 days · 23 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 120° at 7 knots
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 3,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 61 °F, dew point 50 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- DHN, 5 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N1358X · 4
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.