ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 188852
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| Date: | Thursday 10 April 2003 |
| Time: | 16:07 |
| Type: |  Robinson R44 |
| Owner/operator: | ETI (UK) Ltd |
| Registration: | G-NIOL |
| MSN: | 1291 |
| Year of manufacture: | 2003 |
| Engine model: | Lycoming O540 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Avenue Lodge, Brightling Park, near Robertsbridge, East Sussex -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Lydd Airport, Ashford, Kent (LYX/EGMD) |
| Punnett's Town, Heathfield, East Sussex | |
| Investigating agency: | AAIB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
Written off (destroyed) 10-4-2003: Aircraft crash landed into trees at Avenue Lodge in Brightling Park, near Robertsbridge, East Sussex, following stall at 1,200 feet agl. Minor injury to 1 Person On Board: he was taken to the Conquest Hospital in Hastings for a check-up. According to the following excerpts from the official AAIB report into the accident:
"The pilot had planned to fly from Lydd to a landing site near Heathfield, West Sussex. Whilst in the cruise, at an altitude of 1,200 feet and at 100 knots IAS, the pilot passed the southern edge of a rain shower. Shortly after, he noticed that the pitot-static instruments were fluctuating, with variations in indicated airspeed of 20-30 knots, vertical speed excursions up to 1,000 feet per minute, and similar effects upon the altimeter, however, no major turbulence was present.
The pilot decided to reduce speed to 70 knots to see if this had any effect on the fluctuating instruments. As he reached this speed, he became aware of the governor opening the throttle, apparently in response to a slight yaw. He then states that the engine and rotor RPM started to decay, he attempted to roll the throttle open but found that it was already fully open.
Correcting the yaw with right pedal, he lowered the collective and rolled the throttle closed to enter auto-rotation. As auto-rotation was established, he raised the collective slightly to reduce rotor speed and noticed that the engine was still running. He tried to execute a powered recovery by opening the throttle, noticing that the engine RPM needle came up to meet the rotor RPM, but it seemed unable to output any power to the rotors.
The pilot's recollection of the events now became hazy, but he believes he raised the collective to try to power the rotor system, but his attempts to do a power recovery distracted him from the rotor RPM which fell "dangerously low". The helicopter then entered what the pilot described as "freefall", accompanied by uncontrollable yawing and a high rate of descent. He decided that his only option was to obtain forward airspeed despite being close to the ground; he managed to achieve this together with a decreased rate of descent. The pilot, believing that the helicopter could not be recovered, now searched for the best place to do a run-on landing.
The only option appeared to be in a large garden with trees at the rear and the touchdown was made there, still with considerable forward speed. The helicopter ran into the trees and came to rest severely damaged, but the pilot suffered only minor injuries. There was no fire and he evacuated the aircraft without assistance: the emergency services attended shortly afterwards".
An East Sussex Fire Brigade spokeswoman said: "The helicopter crashed into woods. The pilot was uninjured. Approximately 150 litres of fuel leaked into the ground. The brigade ensured the area was safe."
Nature of Damage sustained to airframe: Per the AAIB report "Helicopter destroyed". As a result, the registration G-NIOL was cancelled by the CAA on 07-08-2003 as "destroyed".
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
1. AAIB: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5422ebc7ed915d13740000b9/dft_avsafety_pdf_027265.pdf
2. CAA: https://siteapps.caa.co.uk/g-info/rk=NIOL
3. http://www.griffin-helicopters.co.uk/accidentdetails.aspx?accidentkey=1822
4. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/2937793.stm
5. https://www.helicopter-redeye.com/P14B_GNIOL.htm
6. Robinson R44 G-NIOL at Denham 02-03-2003: http://www.airport-data.com/aircraft/photo/000772344.html
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 25-Jul-2016 15:23 | Dr.John Smith | Added |
| 25-Jul-2016 15:32 | Dr.John Smith | Updated [Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 25-Jul-2016 15:36 | Dr.John Smith | Updated [Location, Narrative] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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