- Date
- May 25, 2014, 15:45 local (19:45 UTC)
- Place
- Essex, MD
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N9023ZBrantly B 2B
- Defining event
- Landing-flare/touchdown: Loss of control in flight
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 2, 2014
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Eastern Region Aviation
- Parties
- FAA/FSDO
- FAA report
- 20140525008899A
- Case key
- 89272
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 failure to maintain helicopter control during landing resulting in a hard landing and a roll over.
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
According to the pilot during an interview with a Federal Aviation Administration inspector, the purpose of the flight was to practice approaches and hovering. As the helicopter neared the ground, he pulled collective to enter a hover when it began to rotate clockwise. He was unable to stop the rotation and the helicopter made two full rotations prior to impacting the ground. The passenger reported that the helicopter impacted the ground "hard, but not too hard." The helicopter bounced, rolled over, and came to rest on the left side of the fuselage, which resulted in substantial damage to the main rotor blades, the fuselage, and tailboom. A postaccident examination of the helicopter revealed no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. In addition, the pilot stated that the passenger was "ride[ing] along" on the flight controls.
Factual narrative
According to the pilot during an interview with a Federal Aviation Administration inspector, the purpose of the flight was to practice approaches and hovering. As the helicopter neared the ground, he pulled collective to enter a hover when it began to rotate clockwise. He was unable to stop the rotation and the helicopter made two full rotations prior to impacting the ground. The passenger reported that the helicopter impacted the ground "hard, but not too hard." The helicopter bounced, rolled over, and came to rest on the left side of the fuselage, which resulted in substantial damage to the main rotor blades, the fuselage, and tailboom. A postaccident examination of the helicopter revealed no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. In addition, the pilot stated that the passenger was "ride[ing] along" on the flight controls.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N9023Z
- Reported as
- Brantly B 2B
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 2021
- Built
- 2001
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A1A, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Mark A. Kukucka
- Registered owner
- Mark A. Kukucka
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- MTN · Baltimore, MD
- Destination
- MTN · Baltimore, MD
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
- 53
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Unknown
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 475 total · 10 in this make and model · 16 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Observed at
- MTN
Docket · 3
The files NTSB released with the investigation on August 20, 2014, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 3.7 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 N9023Z · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.