- Date
- February 6, 2010, 11:19 local (16:19 UTC)
- Place
- Fort Pierce, FL
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N426KAEnstrom F-28C
- Defining event
- Maneuvering-hover: Settling with power/vortex ring state
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 17, 2010
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Eastern Region Aviation
- Parties
- FAA/FSDO
- FAA report
- 20100206026929A
- Case key
- 75349
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 inadvertent encounter with settling with power while hovering downwind.
Findings · 1
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
According to the pilot, he hover-taxied the helicopter downwind in an 18-knot wind that gusted to 26 knots, before he landed and purchased fuel. For the subsequent takeoff, he again hover-taxied downwind to his requested runway. He said the winds were exacerbated either by gusts or a "wind tunnel" effect from two rows of hangers. As the helicopter hovered downwind, the pilot was unable to arrest his descent, forward travel, or a loss of rotor rpm with the adjustment of throttle, collective, and cyclic controls. The helicopter continued over and descended into a drainage "lagoon" before it struck the opposite bank and nosed over. The pilot reported that there were no mechanical deficiencies with the helicopter. According to the FAA Rotorcraft Flying Handbook, among the conditions conducive to settling with power are downwind approaches at low forward airspeed.
Factual narrative
According to the pilot, he hover-taxied the helicopter downwind in an 18-knot wind that gusted to 26 knots, before he landed and purchased fuel. For the subsequent takeoff, he again hover-taxied downwind to his requested runway. He said the winds were exacerbated either by gusts or a "wind tunnel" effect from two rows of hangers. As the helicopter hovered downwind, the pilot was unable to arrest his descent, forward travel, or a loss of rotor rpm with the adjustment of throttle, collective, and cyclic controls. The helicopter continued over and descended into a drainage "lagoon" before it struck the opposite bank and nosed over. The pilot reported that there were no mechanical deficiencies with the helicopter. According to the FAA Rotorcraft Flying Handbook, among the conditions conducive to settling with power are downwind approaches at low forward airspeed.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N426KA
- Reported as
- Enstrom F-28C
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 354
- Airframe hours
- 2,452
- Engine
- Lycoming HIO-360 SER, 205 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Theriault Richard C
- Registered owner
- Theriault Richard C
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · July 1, 2009
- Departed
- FPR · Fort Pierce, FL
- Destination
- FPR · Fort Pierce, FL
- Airport
- FPR · St. Lucie County International, runway 32, 4,755 × 100 ft, asphalt
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
- 57
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Airline transport, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine sea, Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane, Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 1, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- July 30, 2009
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 22,580 total · 230 in this make and model · 16,008 as pilot in command · 140 in the last 90 days · 29 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 280° at 17 knots, gusting 26
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 3,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 70 °F, dew point 55 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.77 inHg
- Observed at
- FPR
Docket · 5
The files NTSB released with the investigation on April 22, 2010, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 1.6 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.