- Date
- July 21, 2014, 13:45 local (17:45 UTC)
- Place
- Titusville, FL
- Injuries
- 2 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N1830DSchweizer 269C
- Defining event
- Landing-flare/touchdown: Hard landing
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 24, 2014
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Eastern Region Aviation
- Parties
- FAA FSDO Orlando
- FAA report
- 20140721014859A
- Case key
- 89716
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 student pilot's failure to initiate the decelerative flare during autorotation and the CFI's delayed remedial action, which resulted in a hard landing.
Findings · 3
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 flight instructor, the instructional flight was in preparation for his student's evaluation flight scheduled the following day. The maneuvers practiced were settling with power, straight-in autorotations, 180-degree autorotations, hovering autorotations, and quick stops. The student pilot was manipulating the controls and initiated an autorotation about 1,300 feet above ground level (agl). About 100 feet agl, the instructor directed the student to initiate a recovery flare. About 50 feet agl, the instructor took the controls from the student and initiated the flare. The helicopter contacted the ground with the tail skid, then the left skid, and subsequently rolled over on its left side. The helicopter sustained substantial damage to the main rotor blades, cabin, and drivetrain. The pilot reported no pre-impact mechanical malfunctions or anomalies that would have precluded normal operation.
Factual narrative
According to the flight instructor, the instructional flight was in preparation for his student's evaluation flight scheduled the following day. The maneuvers practiced were settling with power, straight-in autorotations, 180-degree autorotations, hovering autorotations, and quick stops. The student pilot was manipulating the controls and initiated an autorotation about 1,300 feet above ground level (agl). About 100 feet agl, the instructor directed the student to initiate a recovery flare. About 50 feet agl, the instructor took the controls from the student and initiated the flare. The helicopter contacted the ground with the tail skid, then the left skid, and subsequently rolled over on its left side. The helicopter sustained substantial damage to the main rotor blades, cabin, and drivetrain. The pilot reported no pre-impact mechanical malfunctions or anomalies that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N1830D
- Reported as
- Schweizer 269C
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 0262
- Built
- 2006
- Airframe hours
- 4,704
- Engine
- Lycoming HIO-360-G1A, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Bristow Academy Inc
- Registered owner
- Bristow Academy Inc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · July 15, 2014
- Departed
- TIX · Titusville, FL
- Destination
- TIX · Titusville, FL
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
- 26
- Injuries
- Minor
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial, Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 2, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- July 17, 2014
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 639 total
- Role
- Student pilot
- Age
- 26
- Injuries
- Minor
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 2, Without waivers/limitations
- Seat
- Right
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 70 total · 70 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 3,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 84 °F, dew point 75 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.06 inHg
- Observed at
- TIX, 6 nm away
Docket · 5
The files NTSB released with the investigation on August 27, 2014, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 1.4 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.