- Date
- August 5, 1999, 17:45 local (21:45 UTC)
- Place
- Shirley, NY
- Injuries
- 1 minor, 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N8561KRobinson R-22A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 22, 2000
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19990805010839A
- Case key
- 47040
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 pilot's failure to maintain rotor RPM, which resulted in a hard 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 instructor pilot was demonstrating a 180 degree autorotation to the student pilot. The CFI reported that the helicopter's main rotor RPM dropped immediately after initiation of the flare and the helicopter fell rapidly to the ground. The helicopter bounced, and came to rest upside down. The pilot did not report mechanical malfunctions of the airframe or engine.
Factual narrative
On August 5, 1999, about 1745 eastern daylight time, a Robinson R-22A, N8561K, was substantially damaged while landing at the Brookhaven Airport, Shirley, New York. The certificated flight instructor (CFI) sustained minor injuries, and the student pilot (SP) was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan had been filed for the local instructional flight conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.
In a written statement, the CFI said he was demonstrating a 180 degree autorotation to the SP. He further stated:
"...As I turned final I was at 40 knots and 90 percent RPM. I then lowered the collective to flat pitch before pushing forward on the cyclic to gain airspeed. At approximately 50 feet I started to flare. Loss of RPM occurred immediately after initiation of flare. Helicopter fell rapidly to [the] ground, bouncing once before coming to rest upside down."
The helicopter impacted the ground, approximately 50 feet south of the approach end of runway 6.
Examination of the helicopter by a Federal Aviation Administration Inspector did not reveal any pre-impact malfunctions of the airframe or engine.
The pilot reported 518 total hours of flight experience in rotorcraft. He also reported 505 total flight hours in the make and model of the accident helicopter; of which, 207 flight hours were as a CFI.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8561K
- Reported as
- Robinson R-22A
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 0482
- Airframe hours
- 944
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320, 124 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Alpha Helicopter Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · April 1, 1999 · 70 hours before
- Departed
- HWV · NY
- Airport
- HWV · Brookhaven, runway 15, 4,200 × 100 ft, asphalt
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
- 31
- Certificates
- Private, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 656 total · 505 in this make and model · 490 as pilot in command · 58 in the last 90 days · 25 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 210° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 8 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 75 °F, dew point 66 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- ISP, 11 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.