- Date
- August 31, 2023, 08:05 local (13:05 UTC)
- Place
- Liberty Hill, TX
- Injuries
- 3 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Emergency descent
- Aircraft
- N530JRMcdonnell Douglas Heli 530FF
- Defining event
- Autorotation: 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
- FAA FSDO
- FAA report
- 20230831017089A
- Case key
- 192972
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 recovery from a practice autorotation resulting in a hard landing. Contributing to the accident was the instructor’s inadequate supervision of the pilot receiving instruction.
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
During an instructional flight, the instructor reported that they were practicing simulated engine failures and power recovery autorotations. During the fourth practice autorotation, the pilot receiving instruction attempted to terminate the maneuver with power to a 5 ft above ground level hover. The pilot did not move the twistgrip throttle from idle power back to full open and began raising the collective. The helicopter “fell through” and experienced a hard landing onto a field. The helicopter bounced, touched down hard again and spun about 150° resulting in substantial damage to the tail boom and empennage. The instructor reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures that contributed to the accident.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N530JR
- Reported as
- Mcdonnell Douglas Heli 530FF
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 0711FF
- Built
- 2012
- Airframe hours
- 760.3
- Engine
- Rolls Royce 250-C30, 447 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Free The Oppressed
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · August 21, 2023 · 12.3 hours before
- Departed
- KGTU · Georgetown, TX
- 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 · 2
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 61
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane, Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 2, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- April 29, 2022
- Seat
- Right
- Restraint
- 4-point
- Flight hours
- 4,000 total · 400 in this make and model
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 59
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Medical
- Class 2, With waivers/limitations
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 4-point
- Flight hours
- 1,900 total · 19.1 in this make and model · 682 as pilot in command · 6.9 in the last 90 days · 6.9 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 73 °F, dew point 57 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.92 inHg
- Observed at
- KGTU, 14 nm away
- METAR
- KGTU 311256Z 00000KT 10SM CLR 23/14 A2992 RMK AO2 SLP125 T02280139
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on March 21, 2024, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 3.2 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.