- Date
- April 6, 2011, 12:10 local (18:10 UTC)
- Place
- Salt Lake City, UT
- Injuries
- 1 minor, 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N268SHRobinson Helicopter R22 Beta
- Defining event
- Approach-VFR pattern downwind: Loss of engine power (total)
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 20, 2011
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Western Pacific Region
- Parties
- FAA FSDO
- FAA report
- 20110406005189A
- Case key
- 78788
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 inadvertent action of pulling out the engine's mixture control lever to idle cutoff that resulted in a complete loss of engine power.
Findings · 3
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The certified flight instructor said he and his student were flying the helicopter in the traffic pattern on the downwind leg. The student pilot was flying and the instructor told him to reduce the power to begin the descent for the base turn to final. The student reduced the power by approximately 1 inch of manifold pressure. The instructor then took control of the helicopter and reduced the power by an additional 6 or 7 inches of manifold pressure. He said that the student pulled the mixture control out to the idle cutoff position, which resulted in a loss of engine power. The student had intended to apply carburetor heat and instead inadvertently moved the mixture control, which was located next to the carburetor heat. The instructor turned the helicopter 180 degrees into the wind and simultaneously entered an autorotation from 300 feet above the ground. His selected landing site turned out to be a school yard with children present. He maneuvered the helicopter to a new landing site, but subsequently landed hard. The landing skids were spread and the main rotor cut off the tail boom.
Factual narrative
The certified flight instructor said he and his student were flying the helicopter in the traffic pattern on the downwind leg. The student pilot was flying and he was told by the instructor to reduce the power to begin the descent for the base turn to final. The student reduced the power by approximately 1 inch of manifold pressure. The instructor then took control of the helicopter and reduced the power by an additional 6 or 7 inches of manifold pressure. He said that the student pulled the mixture control out to the idle cutoff position, which resulted in a loss of engine power. The student had intended to apply carburetor heat and instead inadvertently moved the mixture control, which was located next to the carburetor heat. The instructor turned the helicopter 180 degrees into the wind and simultaneously entered an autorotation from 300 feet above the ground. His selected landing site turned out to be a school yard with children present. He maneuvered the helicopter to a new landing site, but subsequently landed hard. The landing skids were spread and the main rotor cut off the tail boom.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N268SH
- Reported as
- Robinson Helicopter R22 Beta
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 4233
- Airframe hours
- 2,354
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-J2A, 145 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Upper Limit Aviation, doing business as Upper Limit Aviation
- Registered owner
- Tumbleweed Leasing Co Inc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · March 23, 2011
- Departed
- SLC · Salt Lake City, UT
- Destination
- U42 · Salt Lake City, UT
- Airport
- U42 · South Valley Regional Arpt
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 · 2
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Flight instructor
- Age
- 26
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Flight instructor
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 2, Without waivers/limitations
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 433 total · 322 in this make and model · 210 in the last 90 days · 80 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
- Role
- Student pilot
- Age
- 25
- Injuries
- Minor
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 2, With waivers/limitations
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 26 total · 26 in this make and model · 26 in the last 90 days · 26 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 160° at 11 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 52 °F, dew point 36 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.10 inHg
- Observed at
- U42
Docket · 1
The files NTSB released with the investigation on April 15, 2011, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 536 KB in all.
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 N268SH · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.