- Date
- November 18, 2003, 16:20 local (23:20 UTC)
- Place
- Chandler, AZ
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N7193JRobinson R22
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 2, 2004
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA
- FAA report
- 20031118029289A
- Case key
- 58367
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 maintain control of the helicopter while hovering. A factor to the accident was the student pilot's lack of experience.
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 helicopter collided with the ground while hovering. The student was on his first solo flight. After flying about 1 hour with his certified flight instructor (CFI), the CFI got out of the helicopter and positioned himself a short distance away. As the student raised the collective, the helicopter began to tilt to the right. He attempted to correct with left cyclic, and the helicopter lifted off the ground. The helicopter was in an unstable hover and the tail rotor struck the surface, resulting in the helicopter yawing 180 degrees to the right. As it rotated, the main rotors struck the surface and the helicopter came to a stop. There were no mechanical malfunctions with the helicopter.
Factual narrative
On November 18, 2003, at 1620 mountain standard time, a Robinson R22 helicopter, N7193J, collided with the ground while lifting into a hover at Chandler Municipal Airport (CHD), Chandler, Arizona. Quantum Helicopters, Inc., was operating the helicopter under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The student pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured; the helicopter sustained substantial damage. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed. The flight was originating at the time.
In a written statement, the student reported that this was his first solo flight. After flying about 1 hour with his certified flight instructor (CFI), the student's CFI got out of the helicopter and positioned himself a short distance away. As the student raised the collective, the helicopter began to tilt to the right. He attempted to correct with left cyclic, and the helicopter lifted off the ground. The helicopter was in an unstable hover and the tail rotor struck the surface, resulting in the helicopter yawing 180 degrees to the right. As it rotated, the main rotors struck the surface and the helicopter came to a stop. The student reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions with the helicopter.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N7193J
- Reported as
- Robinson R22
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 3144
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-J2A, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Quantum Helicopters, doing business as Quantum Helicopters
- Registered owner
- Delta Leasing, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- KCHD · Chandler, AZ
- Airport
- CHD · Chandler Municipal
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
- Student pilot
- Age
- 22
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 2
- Flight hours
- 28 total · 28 in this make and model · 28 in the last 90 days · 28 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.