Incident Overview
A helicopter sustained damage to its tail boom during a hover taxi while conducting a track and balance maintenance flight. The pilot reported that, shortly after beginning the hover taxi, the right door blew open. Observing that a clipboard was about to fall out of the helicopter, the pilot quickly attempted to transfer his left hand to the cyclic control so that he could use his right hand to prevent the clipboard from falling. In the process, he applied excessive aft cyclic input, causing the tail guard to strike the ground.
Inspection Findings
A Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector examined the aircraft and found that the tail boom was buckled. The pilot did not report any mechanical anomalies prior to the accident. No other damage or injuries were mentioned in the source.
Pilot Actions
The pilot's sudden reaction to the falling clipboard led to an unintended control input. The sequence of events—door opening, clipboard shifting, and the pilot's hand transfer—resulted in the tail guard contacting the ground, which subsequently damaged the tail boom.