- Date
- April 27, 2007, 11:15 local (15:15 UTC)
- Place
- West Palm Beach, FL
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N7535ZRobinson R-22 Beta II
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 27, 2007
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Fort Lauderdale, Florida
- FAA report
- 20070427009019A
- Case key
- 65696
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 inadvertent shutting off of the mixture control while performing the prelanding checks that resulted loss of engine power and a roll over during the subsequent forced 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 flight instructor stated that he and his student were on downwind at an altitude of 500 feet, preparing to land the helicopter. He further stated that as they performed prelanding checks, the student pilot within the space of a second removed the guard and pulled the mixture, causing the helicopter's engine to cease operating. The instructor said he immediately entered autorotation, and further stated that the wind was coming from the left, i.e. from the south, and there was no place to turn left due to trees and a road, so he turned right. He said he then saw some trees so he continued to turn right to an open grove, and then started "full down." The student was depressing the right pedal, and the instructor said he continued to maintain rpm as high as possible for the full down, pushed forward, and affected the landing. He said the helicopter landed and continued with its nose to the left due to the right pedal being depressed by the student, and it rolled slightly on its right skid, then collapsed, and came to rest on its belly.
Factual narrative
The flight instructor stated that he and his student were on downwind at an altitude of 500 feet, preparing to land the helicopter. He further stated that as they performed prelanding checks, the student pilot within the space of a second removed the guard and pulled the mixture, causing the helicopter's engine to cease operating. The instructor said he immediately entered autorotation, and further stated that the wind was coming from the left, i.e. from the south, and there was no place to turn left due to trees and a road, so he turned right. He said he then saw some trees so he continued to turn right to an open grove, and then started "full down." The student was depressing the right pedal, and the instructor said he continued to maintain rpm as high as possible for the full down, pushed forward, and affected the landing. He said the helicopter landed and continued with its nose to the left due to the right pedal being depressed by the student, and it rolled slightly on its right skid, then collapsed, and came to rest on its belly.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N7535Z
- Reported as
- Robinson R-22 Beta II
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 3477
- Airframe hours
- 2,855
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Ocean Helicopters Inc.,
- Registered owner
- Airman Helicopters
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · March 1, 2007
- Departed
- F45 · West Palm Beach, FL
- Destination
- F45
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 · 2
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Flight instructor
- Age
- 30
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Medical
- Class 1
- Last flight review
- July 1, 2006
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 640 total · 600 in this make and model · 505 as pilot in command · 200 in the last 90 days · 63 in the last 30 days · 6 in the last 24 hours
- Role
- Student pilot
- Age
- 33
- Injuries
- None
- Medical
- Class 1
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 59 total · 59 in this make and model · 8 as pilot in command · 14 in the last 90 days · 14 in the last 30 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 130° at 14 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 84 °F, dew point 66 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.06 inHg
- Observed at
- PBI
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 N7535Z · 2
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.