- Date
- October 18, 1985, 09:25 local (13:25 UTC)
- Place
- Sterling, MA
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N9069GRobinson R22A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19851018052769A
- Case key
- 30250
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
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 accident occurred when the CFI allowed the student who was in a hover maneuver to lose rotor RPM. The helicopter drift rearward, the left rear skid dug into the ground and the helicopter rolled over. RPM decayed so badly that the helicopter could not respond to recovery control inputs.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N9069G
- Reported as
- Robinson R22A
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 0178
- Airframe hours
- 2,396
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320, 124 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Aviation Training Academy
- Registered owner
- Howie Fuller
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- 3B3 · Sterling, MA
- Airport
- 3B3 · Sterling
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
- 37
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 4,450 total · 1,200 in this make and model · 4,100 as pilot in command · 160 in the last 90 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 50 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.