- Date
- November 24, 1995, 10:50 local (18:50 UTC)
- Place
- Fresno, CA
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N90452Robinson R22HP
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 7, 1996
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19951124038619A
- Case key
- 29340
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
failure of the pilot to maintain proper control of the helicopter, while in a hover.
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 was hovering in an approach to the landing area, when the helicopter began moving backwards and descending. He applied power to arrest the movement, but a skid contacted the ground, and the tail boom then collided with the ground. There were no mechanical difficulties found with the helicopter.
Factual narrative
On November 24, 1995, at 1050 hours Pacific standard time, a Robinson R-22HP helicopter, N90452, crashed on the landing ramp at the Fresno airport in Fresno, California. The helicopter received substantial damage and the two occupants were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions existed at the time. The aircraft had departed an hour earlier for a local pleasure flight.
According to the operator, at the bottom of the approach to the landing area, the helicopter started backing up. The heels of the skids caught on the asphalt and the tail rotor hit the ground damaging the aircraft. The pilot stated in his report that before he put the helicopter on the ground from a hover, it started moving back slowly and descended. He applied power to stop the slow descent when one of the skids touched the ground. The helicopter started accelerating backwards and collided with the ground.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N90452
- Reported as
- Robinson R22HP
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 0121
- Airframe hours
- 5,632
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-B2C, 124 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Golden Eagle Enterprises, Inc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- AAIP · November 14, 1995 · 29 hours before
- Departed
- FAT
- Airport
- FAT · Fresno
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
- 23
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 550 total · 400 in this make and model · 90 in the last 90 days · 36 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 220° at 3 knots
- Visibility
- 2.5 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 68 °F, dew point 52 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.