- Date
- June 30, 2022, 08:45 local (13:45 UTC)
- Place
- Idabel, OK
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N378JCBell Helicopter Textron Canada 206L-4
- Defining event
- Landing-flare/touchdown: Hard landing
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- FAA report
- 20220630011539A
- Case key
- 105394
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 pilot’s failure to apply full power during the practice autorotation recovery, which resulted in a hard landing.
Findings · 4
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 flight instructor reported that he and pilot receiving instruction were conducting an instructional flight to include practice autorotation maneuvers. The flight instructor reported that he was demonstrating a straight-in autorotation with power recovery but did not apply full power as required. About 10 ft above the runway the low rotor horn sounded, and the pilot attempted to go around, but the helicopter bounced on the runway and pitched forward. The main rotor blades contacted and severed the tail boom, which resulted in substantial damage. The pilot reported there were no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N378JC
- Reported as
- Bell Helicopter Textron Canada 206L-4
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 52448
- Built
- 2013
- Airframe hours
- 900.8
- Engine
- Rolls Royce 250-C30P, 650 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Giles A. Hill
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · April 4, 2022
- Airport
- 4O4 · Mc Curtain County Rgnl, runway 02, 5,002 × 75 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- ADS-B, Electronic multifunction display, Electronic primary flight display
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 · 2
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 53
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Airline transport, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane, Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 2, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- May 24, 2022
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 4-point
- Flight hours
- 4,015 total · 428 in this make and model · 3,823 as pilot in command · 100 in the last 90 days · 30 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 58
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- May 1, 2022
- Seat
- Right
- Restraint
- 4-point
- Flight hours
- 4,100 total · 15 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 60° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 9 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 79 °F, dew point 70 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.11 inHg
- Observed at
- K4O4
- METAR
- K4O4 301355Z AUTO 06006KT 9SM CLR 26/21 A3011 RMK AO2
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on July 22, 2022, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 15.8 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.