- Date
- October 25, 1987, 16:25 local (21:25 UTC)
- Place
- Laconia, NH
- Injuries
- 3 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N51699Enstrom F-28C
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 7, 1989
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19871025060549A
- Case key
- 36043
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 plt rprtd he was demonstrating a full touchdown autorotation in winds that were from 290 deg at 15 gusting 20 KTS. He stated the touchdown was soft with a lot of pitch pulled in; however, as he lowered the collective after touchdown, the retreating blade flexed downward & severed the aft portion of the tail boom & the tail rotor drive shaft. The plt believed he had lowered the collective too fast after touchdown, which would have allowed the blades to flap downward. Also, he believed the high wind & reduced RPM from the autorotation would have attributed to excessive flapping of the retreating rotor blades.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N51699
- Reported as
- Enstrom F-28C
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 416
- Airframe hours
- 2,753
- Engine
- Lycoming HIO-360-E1AD, 205 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Copters Unlimited, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · October 8, 1987
- Departed
- LCI
- Airport
- LCI · Laconia
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
- 38
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 666 total · 435 in this make and model · 591 as pilot in command · 232 in the last 90 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 290° at 15 knots, gusting 20
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 48 °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.
Other investigations on N51699 · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.