- Date
- October 16, 2010, 10:35 local (16:35 UTC)
- Place
- Englewood, CO
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N20130Schweizer 269C
- Defining event
- Landing-flare/touchdown: Loss of control in flight
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 16, 2011
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- FAA report
- 20101016047619A
- Case key
- 77618
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 student pilot’s failure to maintain directional control of the helicopter during landing.
Findings · 2
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The student pilot was landing the helicopter in a field on his third solo landing of the day. During landing, the helicopter began to yaw and he added engine power in an attempt to correct. The helicopter began to spin and after two to three 360-degree rotations, the student pilot reduced collective input and reduced the engine throttle in an attempt to perform an autorotation from a hover. The helicopter landed hard and came to rest in an upright position. The helicopter’s fuselage sustained structural damage during the mishap. The student pilot reported no malfunctions or defects with the helicopter.
Factual narrative
The student pilot, with approximately four hours of solo flight time, was landing the single-engine helicopter in a field. On his third solo landing of the day the helicopter began to yaw. As the student pilot added engine power in an attempt to correct for the yaw, the helicopter started to spin. After two to three 360 degree rotations, the student pilot reduced collective input and rolled off the engine throttle to attempt a hovering auto landing. The helicopter landed hard and came to rest in an upright position. The student pilot shut down the helicopter and was able to exit unassisted. The helicopter’s fuselage sustained structural damage during the mishap. No malfunctions or defects with the helicopter’s controls or other systems were reported.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N20130
- Reported as
- Schweizer 269C
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- S1786
- Airframe hours
- 2,670
- Engine
- Lycoming HIO-360 SER, 190 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Mountain One Helicopters
- Registered owner
- Beacon Aviation LLC
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Unknown · October 1, 2010
- Departed
- APA · Englewood, CO
- Destination
- APA · Englewood, CO
- Airport
- APA · Centennial Airport
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Student pilot
- Age
- 38
- Injuries
- None
- Medical
- Class 3, Without waivers/limitations
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 39 total · 38 in this make and model · 4 as pilot in command · 6 in the last 90 days · 1 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 360° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 54 °F, dew point 30 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.37 inHg
- Observed at
- APA
Docket · 1
The files NTSB released with the investigation on November 17, 2010, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 2.0 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.