On September 9, 1982, a Robinson R-22 HP (registration N9078N) operated by Corporate Air was involved in an aviation accident near Gardner, KS. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The student pilot's failure to maintain control during a hover maneuver in gusty wind conditions, which resulted in a rollover. This summary draws on records from the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) historical archive; 8 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.
A student pilot with minimal helicopter experience lost control of the aircraft during a hover maneuver when a sudden gust of wind from the right caused an uncommanded roll to the left.
What happened
A non-certified flight instructor was providing instruction to a student pilot who had accumulated only six hours of total time in helicopters. During the training session, the student pilot attempted to lift the aircraft into a hover. At this critical phase of flight, a gust of wind struck the helicopter from the right side. In response, the student pilot moved the cyclic pitch control to the left. This input caused the aircraft to roll over onto its left side. The instructor reported that his attempts to stop the roll were ineffective.
Findings
The accident occurred during a training exercise involving a student pilot with limited experience. The primary factor was the loss of control due to wind gusts and the resulting cyclic input. The student pilot's lack of sufficient flight time likely contributed to the inability to counteract the lateral drift effectively.
Probable cause
The student pilot's failure to maintain control during a hover maneuver in gusty wind conditions, which resulted in a rollover.