Incident Description
A helicopter pilot was approaching a landing area located just east of a restaurant from the south during night visual meteorological conditions. During the approach, the pilot could not see the lighted flag on top of the restaurant, which prevented him from determining wind direction or velocity for landing. He executed a go-around and began maneuvering to approach the landing area from the east. At the northernmost point of the go-around, the pilot felt a tail rotor strike. The tail rotor had struck telephone lines along the north side of a road.
Hard Landing and Damage
Immediately after the tail rotor strike, the pilot put the helicopter down hard into a ditch alongside the road. The hard landing broke the left skid, crushed the right skid and fuselage upward, bent and twisted the main rotor blades, and bent the tail rotor blades.
Examination
An examination of the helicopter's systems revealed no anomalies.