- Date
- April 6, 2008, 12:00 local (16:00 UTC)
- Place
- Batavia, OH
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N62GSSchultz Mini 500
- Defining event
- Maneuvering-hover: Sys/Comp malf/fail (non-power)
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 28, 2008
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Cincinnati, Ohio
- Case key
- 67972
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 failure of the helicopter's centrifugal clutch during hover which led to the pilot's inability to maintain control of the craft and its subsequent impact with the ground.
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 reported that he was air taxiing his homebuilt helicopter when the centrifugal clutch failed and the helicopter abruptly descended into the ground. The helicopter struck its right skid and then rolled onto its side.
Factual narrative
The pilot reported that he was air taxiing his homebuilt helicopter when the centrifugal clutch failed and the helicopter abruptly descended into the ground. The helicopter struck its right skid and then rolled onto its side.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N62GS
- Reported as
- Schultz Mini 500
- Category
- Helicopter, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 36
- Engine
- Rotax 582, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Departed
- I69 · Batavia, OH
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
- 81
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Private, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land, Single-engine sea
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Flight hours
- 2,950 total · 150 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day