- Date
- September 15, 1991, 11:15 local (15:15 UTC)
- Place
- Penuelas, PR
- Injuries
- 3 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N1397XBell 47G-3B-1
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 27, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19910915040009A
- Case key
- 32924
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
Inadvertent control interference by a passenger shortly after takeoff resulting in the loss of control and roll over after touchdown.
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
Shortly after lift off the pax seated in the coplt's seat pushed the cyclic control stick fwd with his knee. The plt was unable to recover before impact with the ground. The helicopter rolled over after touchdown.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N1397X
- Reported as
- Bell 47G-3B-1
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 6585
- Airframe hours
- 5,793
- Engine
- Lycoming TVO-435-ALF, 260 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Part 91
- Operator
- Martinez, Juan F.
- Registered owner
- Martinez, Juan F.
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
- 35
- Certificates
- Private, Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land, Single-engine sea
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane, Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Flight hours
- 2,944 total · 370 in this make and model · 2,614 as pilot in command · 100 in the last 90 days · 79 in the last 30 days · 6 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 90° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 91 °F
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 N1397X · 4
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.