- Date
- September 27, 1989, 11:45 local (16:45 UTC)
- Place
- Grand Prairie, TX
- Injuries
- 3 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N995KPBell 206BII
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 25, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19890927037469A
- Case key
- 22922
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 decision to execute an abrupt maneuver while hovering downwind, which led to a reduction in rotor RPM and subsequent 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 pilot hover taxied the helicopter off the runway with a 10 to 18 knot gusty tailwind over a freshly mowed grassy area. He rapidly applied collective pitch and undersped the main rotor system. The governor control arm movement became restricted due to poor servicing and quality control by company maintenance personnel. Main rotor RPM could not be regained and the helicopter descended. The pilot over flared the helicopter causing the tail rotor to strike the ground and main rotor blade flexed downward and severed the tailboom. A hard landing resulted.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N995KP
- Reported as
- Bell 206BII
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 2201
- Airframe hours
- 5,737
- Engine
- Allison 250-C20, 317 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Operator
- Texas Helijet
- Registered owner
- Texas Helijet Inc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · September 7, 1989
- Departed
- FTW · Fort Worth, TX
- Airport
- F67 · Grand Prairie, runway 35, 3,000 × 75 ft, grass/turf
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
- 45
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Flight hours
- 14,000 total · 8,000 in this make and model · 14,000 as pilot in command · 50 in the last 90 days · 20 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 60° at 10 knots, gusting 18
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 64 °F, dew point 52 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- RBD, 9 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.