- Date
- January 25, 2006, 15:15 local (21:15 UTC)
- Place
- Fort Worth, TX
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N225GHBell 206L-4
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report April 25, 2006
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration - Flight Standards
- FAA report
- 20060125000369A
- Case key
- 63153
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 flight instructors failure to maintain main rotor RPM and improper flare, which resulted in a hard landing.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The 11,500-hour helicopter flight instructor reported that he was instructing a 9,500-hour airline transport rated pilot at a private training runway (2,000-feet long by 75-feet wide asphalt runway). During a practice autorotation, the flight instructor stated that the helicopter experienced a hard landing as a result of low rotor RPM during touchdown. The flight instructor also reported that there were no abnormalities with the helicopter's flight controls, or engine at the time of the accident. The winds at the time of the accident were reported as light and variable. The density altitude was estimated at 750-feet mean sea level (MSL).
Factual narrative
The 11,500-hour helicopter flight instructor reported he was instructing a 9,500-hour airline transport rated pilot at a private training runway (2,000-feet long by 75-feet wide asphalt runway). During a practice autorotation, the flight instructor stated that the helicopter experienced a hard landing as a result of low rotor RPM during touchdown. The flight instructor also reported there were no abnormalities with the helicopter's flight controls, or engine at the time of the accident. The winds at the time of the accident were reported as light and variable. The density altitude was estimated at 750-feet mean sea level (MSL).
Aircraft
- Registration
- N225GH
- Reported as
- Bell 206L-4
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 52143
- Engine
- Allison C250-130P, 650 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Bell Training Academy, doing business as Bell Training Academy
- Registered owner
- Textron Financial Corp
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- KAFW · Fort Worth, TX
- Flight plan
- Company VFR
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
- 58
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Flight engineer, Airline transport, Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter, Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- July 1, 2005
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 11,500 total · 750 in this make and model · 11,125 as pilot in command · 120 in the last 90 days · 40 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
- Role
- Student pilot
- Age
- 41
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight engineer, Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine sea, Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 2, Without waivers/limitations
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 9,500 total · 25 in the last 90 days · 25 in the last 30 days · 25 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 140° at 12 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 55 °F, dew point 28 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.31 inHg
- Observed at
- AFW, 5 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.