- Date
- January 27, 2001, 16:00 local (22:00 UTC)
- Place
- Damon, TX
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N99DKSchweizer 269C
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 27, 2001
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA FSDO
- FAA report
- 20010127029699A
- Case key
- 51407
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 takeoff to a hover, which resulted in a dynamic rollover.
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 pilot landed the helicopter off airport due to the observer becoming sick. After the observer recovered, the pilot attempted to takeoff. With the helicopter headed into the wind, he increased collective. The left skid lifted first and he applied the correction he "thought was appropriate: more left stick/cyclic." The pilot then felt the skid continue to rise, and he had the feeling that the right skid was "hooked" by the ground. He applied "full left stick/cyclic deflection and lowered collective." The pilot stated that "at that time I believe a wind shift with a gust blew under my rotor and pushed me over." The main rotor blades hit the ground, and the helicopter came to rest on its right side.
Factual narrative
On January 27, 2001, at 1600 central standard time, a Schweizer 269C helicopter, N99DK, was substantially damaged when it rolled over during takeoff near Damon, Texas. The helicopter was registered to Cape Atlantic Landowners Association, Inc., of New Smyrna Beach, Florida, and operated by Barr Air Patrol of Houston, Texas. The commercial pilot and observer were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a flight plan was not filed for the 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 aerial observation flight. The flight originated from the Houston Airpark Airport, Pearland, Texas, about 1500, for a power line patrol.
The pilot reported that he landed the helicopter off airport due to the observer becoming sick. After the observer recovered, he attempted to takeoff. With the helicopter headed into the wind, he increased collective. The left skid lifted first and he applied the correction he "thought was appropriate: more left stick/cyclic." The pilot further reported that he then felt the skid continue to rise, and he had the feeling that the right skid was "hooked" by the ground. He applied "full left stick/cyclic deflection and lowered collective." The pilot stated that "at that time I believe a wind shift with a gust blew under my rotor and pushed me over." The main rotor blades hit the ground, and the helicopter came to rest on its right side.
The operator reported that the main rotor transmission, main rotor blades, tail boom, tail rotor, and the right side of the fuselage were damaged.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N99DK
- Reported as
- Schweizer 269C
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- S1783
- Airframe hours
- 11
- Engine
- Lycoming HIO-360-D1A, 190 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial observation · Part 91
- Registered owner
- United Helicopters, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · January 9, 2001 · 11 hours before
- Departed
- 21T · Pearland, TX
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
- Pilot
- Age
- 25
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Last flight review
- February 14, 2000
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 2,330 total · 1,800 in this make and model · 2,180 as pilot in command · 300 in the last 90 days · 100 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
- Role
- Other flight crew
- Injuries
- None
- Seat
- Right
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 130° at 14 knots, gusting 19
- Visibility
- 6 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Altimeter
- 30.05 inHg
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.