# NTSB CEN11LA553: Hyde William R Helicycle, N128BH, Metone, IN, August 6, 2011 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: August 6, 2011, 15:30 local (19:30 UTC) - Place: Metone, IN - Coordinates: 41.150554, -86.630554 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=41.1506&lon=-86.6306&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Approach](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/500) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Defining event: [Approach-VFR pattern final: Fuel starvation](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/191) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report May 15, 2012 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Central Region - Parties: FAA South Bend FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 81420 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=CEN11LA553 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/81420/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=81420 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN11LA553 ## Probable cause The loss of engine power due to fuel starvation as a result of an electrical system failure. ## Findings NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause. - [Fuel system: fuel sys wiring](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01022897): Aircraft › Aircraft systems · Failure (probable cause); cases with it: [Hyde William R HELICYCLE, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01022897/cases.md?model=056249I), [All aircraft, 5 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01022897/cases.md) ## Sequence of events The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened. - [Approach-VFR pattern final: Fuel starvation](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/191) (defining event); cases with it: [Hyde William R HELICYCLE, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/191/sequence.md?model=056249I), [All aircraft, 733 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/191/sequence.md) - [Approach-VFR pattern final: Loss of engine power (total)](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/341); cases with it: [Hyde William R HELICYCLE, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/341/sequence.md?model=056249I), [All aircraft, 3,820 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/341/sequence.md) - [Autorotation: Hard landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/092); cases with it: [Hyde William R HELICYCLE, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/092/sequence.md?model=056249I), [All aircraft, 2,102 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/092/sequence.md) ## Analysis The pilot reported that the helicopter was about 100 yards from the landing zone at 100 feet above ground level at 40 mph airspeed when the engine “flamed out.” He attempted to execute an autorotation, but the helicopter impacted hard. The examination of the helicopter revealed that the electrical wires that provided power to the helicopter’s fuel pump became disconnected, which resulted in an interruption in the fuel flow to the engine. ## Factual narrative On August 6, 2011, about 1530 eastern daylight time, an experimental, amateur-built Hyde Helicycle helicopter, N128BH, sustained substantial damage when it landed hard during an autorotation after a loss of engine power at the Mentone Airport (C92), Mentone, Indiana. The private pilot was not injured. The helicopter was registered to and operated by the pilot as a personal flight under the provisions of the 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident, and no flight plan was filed. The helicopter departed C92 on a local flight about one minute prior to the accident. The pilot reported that he was about 100 yards from the landing zone at 100 feet above ground level (agl) at 40 mph airspeed when the engine “flamed out.” He attempted to execute an autorotation, but the helicopter impacted hard. The landing skid broke and the main rotor, tail rotor, and tail boom sustained substantial damage. The inspection of the helicopter revealed that the electrical wires that provided power to the helicopter’s fuel pump became disconnected, which subsequently shut down the engine. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N128BH](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N128BH-2022-02-05), registration cancelled 2022-02-05, S/N 1-21B-1-27B (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: HYDE WILLIAM R HELICYCLE - Registry model: [Hyde William R HELICYCLE](https://openairdocs.org/model/hyde-william-r-helicycle) (registry code 056249I) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Helicopter, amateur-built - Serial number: 1-21B-1-27B - Airframe hours: 49 - Engines: Solar T62-32 160 horsepower turbo shaft - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Operator: Hyde William R - Registered owner: Hyde William R - Airworthiness certificate: Special, Experimental (Special) - Last inspection: Condition, August 7, 2011 - Departed: C92, Metone, IN - Destination: C92, Metone, IN - Airport: C92, Metone Airport ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 61; injuries: none; private; airplane ratings: single-engine sea, single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 3, with waivers/limitations; last flight review November 14, 2009; seat: center; flight hours: 461 total, 49 in this make and model, 315 as pilot in command, 11 in the last 90 days, 1 in the last 30 days ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: 5,000 ft overcast - Temperature: 91 °F - Altimeter: 30.02 inHg - Observed at: C92 ## 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 20110806017539A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20110806017539A), Aug 6, 2011: Hyde William R HELICYCLE, Mentone, IN, Substantial damage. The pilot of the Helicycle [privacy data omitted] was participating in an annual event held by the popular rotocraft association in Mentone, Indiana 46539. The… ## Docket (3 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on April 6, 2012, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=81420. 840 KB in all. - Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 (item 1, .PDF, 443 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40365195&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Pilot%2FOperator%20Aircraft%20Accident%20Report,%20NTSB%20Form%206120.1-Redacted.PDF - Record of Conversation - 1 (item 2, .PDF, 56 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40365196&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Record%20of%20Conversation%20-%201-Master.PDF - FAR 61.31 (item 3, .PDF, 342 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40365197&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=FAR%2061.31-Master.PDF 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.