- Date
- August 27, 2021, 18:30 local (Aug 28, 2021, 01:30 UTC)
- Place
- Camp Verde, AZ
- Injuries
- 3 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N544SHRobinson R44
- Defining event
- Landing-flare/touchdown: Collision during takeoff/land
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Western Pacific Region
- Parties
- FSDO
- Case key
- 103849
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 inadequate preflight performance calculations which resulted in an aborted takeoff and collision with trees.
Findings · 5
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 pilot reported that, while taking off from a remote mountainous site, the helicopter encountered some turbulent air and the main rotor RPM decayed. He elected to abort the takeoff and land at a site about 20-30 ft from the original location. During the landing, the main rotor blades struck a tree. The helicopter sustained substantial damage to main rotor blades and main rotor hub assembly. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation. He also reported that the accident could have been avoided by taking more time to calculate and determine the density altitude and out of ground effect performance of the helicopter at the time of the accident.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N544SH
- Reported as
- Robinson R44 (II)
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 10818
- Built
- 2005
- Airframe hours
- 3,724.6
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-540-AEIA5, 260 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Public aircraft - local · Part 91
- Operator
- Yavapai County
- Registered owner
- Yavapai County
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · August 9, 2021 · 12.7 hours before
- Departed
- KPRC · Prescott, AZ
- Destination
- KPRC · Prescott, AZ
- Airport
- N/A
- Equipment
- ADS-B
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
- 48
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Medical
- Class 2, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- August 13, 2020
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 971 total · 968 in this make and model · 873 as pilot in command · 22 in the last 90 days · 12 in the last 30 days · 6 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 68 °F, dew point 50 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.75 inHg
- Observed at
- KPRC, 38 nm away
- METAR
- METAR KPRC 271253Z 18004KT 9SM CLR 16/08 A3007 RMK AO2 SLP096 T01560083=
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on December 14, 2021, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 7.4 MB in all.