ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 211381
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| Date: | Wednesday 3 February 1999 |
| Time: | 15:30 |
| Type: |  Robinson R22 BETA |
| Owner/operator: | |
| Registration: | VH-NLT |
| MSN: | 2542 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1995 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 2 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Location: | 9km ENE of Fossil Downs Station, WA -
 Australia
|
| Phase: | Initial climb |
| Nature: | Passenger - Non-Scheduled/charter/Air Taxi |
| Departure airport: | Fossil Downs Station, WA |
| Fitzroy Crossing, WA | |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The Robinson R22 helicopter was sent to Fossil Downs Station by the operator to conduct a small mustering assignment. As the operator's pilot was relatively inexperienced and not qualified to conduct mustering operations, the helicopter was fitted with dual controls so that an experienced and qualified pilot who was on-site could conduct the flying while the operator's pilot occupied the other seat. However, after the aircraft arrived at the station, the on-site pilot requested that the operator's pilot transport two passengers from the station to Fitzroy Crossing. Although the operator's pilot had insufficient hours to conduct mustering, he held a commercial pilot's licence and was qualified to carry passengers.
The pilot transported the first passenger from the helicopter landing site without incident. However during the second departure, at about 15 ft and just as the helicopter was achieving translational lift, it sank back towards the ground. When the pilot increased the collective pitch in an attempt to regain the required departure profile, the low rotor RPM warning horn sounded and the rate of descent increased. The pilot reported that he checked that the throttle was fully open but the main rotor RPM continued to decrease. The helicopter landed heavily and the main rotor blades clipped a tree. The pilot reported that as soon as it landed, he shut the engine down. The helicopter was extensively damaged but neither occupant was injured. The pilot reported that he flew the second flight's takeoff into wind along a similar path to that flown during the previous passenger flight.
The maintenance organisation that repaired the helicopter reported that no mechanical fault was found that would have contributed to the accident. The accident was not subject to an on-site investigation by the Bureau of Air Safety Investigation.
Sources:
https://www.atsb.gov.au/publications/investigation_reports/1999/aair/aair199900833/
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 24-May-2018 10:29 | Pineapple | Added |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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