- Date
- September 7, 2023, 12:00 local (17:00 UTC)
- Place
- Arcola, TX
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Emergency descent
- Aircraft
- N8372FMcdonnell Douglas Helicopter 369E
- 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
- 20230907010599A
- Case key
- 193027
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 instructor’s failure to re-apply engine power during a power recovery after a practice autorotation which resulted in a hard 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
During an evaluation flight with a company pilot, the instructor pilot reported that he failed to re-apply engine power prior to the completion of a practice autorotation with a power recovery. During the maneuver, the instructor’s attention was diverted from reapplying engine power by an airplane holding short of the runway near their planned touchdown point. The helicopter subsequently landed hard on the runway, which resulted in substantial damage to the tail boom. The instructor reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions of failures with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8372F
- Reported as
- Mcdonnell Douglas Helicopter 369E
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 0488E
- Built
- 1991
- Airframe hours
- 18,500
- Engine
- Rolls Royce 250-C20B, 420 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Other work use · Public use
- Operator
- City Of Houston Police Department
- Registered owner
- City Of Houston Police Department
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · July 27, 2023
- Departed
- AXH · Arcola, TX
- Airport
- AXH · Houston Southwest, runway 27, 5,002 × 100 ft, asphalt
- 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
- Flight instructor
- Age
- 56
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter, Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- January 27, 2023
- Seat
- Right
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 4,115 total · 2,525 in this make and model · 4,068 as pilot in command · 87 in the last 90 days · 28 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 53
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Medical
- Class 1, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- February 25, 2023
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 1,197 total · 990 in this make and model · 1,155 as pilot in command · 87 in the last 90 days · 38 in the last 30 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 95 °F, dew point 73 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.97 inHg
- Observed at
- KAXH
- METAR
- KAXH 071715Z AUTO 00000KT 10SM CLR 35/23 A2997 RMK AO2 T03540227
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on November 9, 2023, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 3.1 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.
Other investigations on N8372F · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.