- Date
- July 26, 2023, 11:00 local (16:00 UTC)
- Place
- Charles City, IA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Prior to flight
- Aircraft
- N4174LRobinson Helicopter R44 II
- Defining event
- Prior to flight: Aircraft loading event
- 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, Des Moines FSDO
- FAA report
- 20230726008029A
- Case key
- 192720
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 improper preflight of the helicopter to ensure that it was within the loading and performance limitations that resulted in settling and impact with terrain during initial climb.
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 pilot of the aerial application flight stated that when the flight returned to the load truck, it still had aerial application product aboard, which he was unaware of. He requested and received an additional 60 gallons of product that was loaded onto the helicopter for the accident flight. After loading the helicopter with the additional product, it now was about 172 lbs over the helicopter’s gross weight. When the helicopter departed from the load truck on the accident flight, the helicopter experienced a decay in rotor rpm and settled into an adjacent corn field about 75 ft from the truck. The helicopter sustained substantial damage to the main and tail rotor blades and tail boom. The pilot stated that he was not properly prepared to jettison the load in the event of an emergency and his power cross checks were not adequate. The pilot stated that there was no mechanical malfunction/failure of the helicopter. An excessive load would have reduced the climb performance capability of the helicopter and resulted in settling.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4174L
- Reported as
- Robinson Helicopter R44 II
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 12495
- Built
- 2008
- Airframe hours
- 1,913.7
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-540, 245 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 91
- Operator
- Back Nine Aerial LLC, doing business as Recon Helicopters
- Registered owner
- Cst & Sons LLC
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Restricted (Special)
- Departed
- West Union, IA
- Destination
- Charles City, IA
- Equipment
- ADS-B
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
- 39
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 2, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- April 11, 2022
- Seat
- Front
- Restraint
- 4-point
- Flight hours
- 2,057 total · 1,204 in this make and model · 2,032 as pilot in command · 208 in the last 90 days · 189 in the last 30 days · 8 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 75 °F, dew point 72 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.82 inHg
- Observed at
- CCY, 7 nm away
Docket · 3
The files NTSB released with the investigation on October 17, 2023, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 2.5 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.