- Date
- October 11, 1992, 11:45 local (18:45 UTC)
- Place
- El Monte, CA
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Taxi
- Aircraft
- N162BBell 47-D1
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 14, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19921011041499A
- Case key
- 27844
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 the rotor RPM.
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
While on a local helicopter sightseeing flight the pilot demonstrated a pinnacle landing to hill top plateau. The pilot reported that when he flared he experienced a loss of power which forced him to land on the edge of the hill. The engine power then restored and the pilot lifted off the helicopter and air taxied it toward the center of the plateau. During the air taxi the engine again lost power and the helicopter landed hard and rolled over. FAA inspectors reported that the wreckage examination disclosed the impact was consistent with a low rotor RPM hard landing. Examination of the engine disclosed no evidence of any prexisting malfunction or failure.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N162B
- Reported as
- Bell 47-D1
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 16
- Airframe hours
- 8,916
- Engine
- Franklin 6V200-C32, 210 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Ochwatt, Robert & Edward, doing business as Hollywood Helicopters
- Registered owner
- Wilson, Robert B.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · October 3, 1992
- Departed
- BUR · Burbank, CA
- Destination
- BUR
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
- 44
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 4,103 total · 3,624 as pilot in command · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N162B · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.