# NTSB GAA26WA184: Robinson R44, Yorke Island, Australia, March 31, 2026

- Type: NTSB accident investigation
- Classification: Accident · Serious injuries · Class 5 · Foreign
- Date: March 31, 2026, 14:36 local (04:36 UTC)
- Place: Yorke Island, Australia · Yorke Island Airport
- Coordinates: -9.75057, 143.40728
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=-9.7506&lon=143.4073&mi=10
- Phase of flight: [Initial climb](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/350) (OpenAirDocs' grouping)
- Defining event: [Initial climb: Flight control sys malf/fail](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/333)
- Highest injury: Serious injuries
- Injuries: 1 serious
- Status: Led by another country's authority
- Investigation class: Class 5 - No publish
- NTSB office: General Aviation Accidents
- Lead agency: Other
- NTSB case key (mKey): 202935
- NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=GAA26WA184
- NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/202935/pdf
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/GAA26WA184

## Sequence of events

The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened.

- [Initial climb: Flight control sys malf/fail](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/333) (defining event); cases with it: [All aircraft, 410 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/333/sequence.md)

## Aircraft

- Registration: VH-HYR (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: ROBINSON R44 (II)
- Category: Helicopter
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Fire: Unknown
- Flight: Non-U.S., non-commercial
- Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal
- Airport: YYKI, Yorke Island Airport

## Weather

- Conditions: Day
- Wind: 130° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Temperature: 81 °F, dew point 77 °F
- Icing: Unknown
- Turbulence: Unknown
- Observed at: YHID, 83 nm away
- METAR: METAR YHID 311230Z AUTO 13007KT 9999 // FEW015 27/25 Q1011=

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

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