- Date
- February 1, 2007, 08:00 local (13:00 UTC)
- Place
- Plymouth, MA
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N2074KSchweizer 269C
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 27, 2007
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA/FSDO
- Case key
- 65793
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 during landing, and the flight instructor's delayed remedial action.
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 student pilot successfully performed three autorotations to a hover; however, during the fourth, he "landed hard with a yaw to the left." The flight instructor was not able to correct the yaw, and the helicopter impacted the ground, damaging the tail boom. The accident was not reported until the flight instructor was involved in a similar accident, in the same helicopter, about 30 days later. No mechanical deficiencies were reported by the flight instructor or the student pilot.
Factual narrative
According to the flight instructor of the Schweizer 269C helicopter, the student pilot successfully performed three autorotations to a hover; however, during the fourth, he "landed hard with a yaw to the left." The flight instructor was not able to correct the yaw, and the helicopter impacted the ground, damaging the tail boom. The accident was not reported until the flight instructor was involved in a similar accident, in the same helicopter, about 30 days later. No mechanical deficiencies were reported by the flight instructor or the student pilot.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N2074K
- Reported as
- Schweizer 269C
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 0136
- Airframe hours
- 1,111
- Engine
- Lycoming HO-360, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- ExecJet Inc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- PYM · Plymouth, MA
- Destination
- PYM · Plymouth, MA
- Airport
- PYM · Plymouth Municipal Airport
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
- Flight instructor
- Age
- 26
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 2, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- July 1, 2006
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 250 total · 180 in this make and model · 180 as pilot in command · 50 in the last 90 days · 45 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 43 °F, dew point 48 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.12 inHg
- Observed at
- PYM
Other investigations on N2074K · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.