History of Flight
On April 3, 2013, at about 1600 eastern daylight time, a Robinson R44 helicopter, registration N3101H, experienced separation of components in flight and impacted the ground shortly after takeoff from Kendall Tamiami Executive Airport (TMB) in Miami, Florida. The helicopter was registered to and operated by Bravo Helicopters, LLC, of Miami, Florida. The commercial pilot and a pilot-rated mechanic sustained fatal injuries. The flight was conducted as a maintenance test flight under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the local flight that departed a few minutes before the accident.
Multiple witnesses in the vicinity reported hearing a loud "pop" noise and seeing parts separate from the helicopter as it flew overhead. Witnesses consistently reported that the empennage section departed the aircraft before impact with the ground. One witness, standing about 20 feet from the impact, stated that the helicopter was inverted over industrial buildings before it struck two palm trees about 25 feet above ground level, a pickup truck, and then the ground. Another witness noted that the postcrash fire started after the pilot and passenger were extracted from the helicopter, or about 5 minutes after the initial impact.
Personnel Information
According to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) records, the pilot held a commercial pilot certificate with ratings for helicopter and airplane single-engine land, issued on October 23, 2003, and a mechanic certificate with airframe and power plant ratings issued on the same date. He was issued a first-class medical certificate on February 25, 2013, with the restriction "must wear corrective lenses for distant and possess glasses for near vision." In February 2013, the pilot reported 6,840 total flight hours and 76 flight hours in the previous 6 months. The pilot's logbooks were not retrieved.
Aircraft Information
The four-seat, skid-type landing gear helicopter, serial number 1610, was manufactured in 2006. It was powered by a Lycoming O-540-F1B5, 225-horsepower engine, serial number L-26556-40A. The last annual inspection was conducted on December 4, 2012, at an hour meter time of 749.4 total hours. The hour meter, located at the crash site, read 760.2 hours. The helicopter was issued a standard airworthiness certificate on October 21, 2011.
According to the helicopter logbook, the manufacturer's order form indicated that both spindle bearings were replaced, refurbished, and installed on new rotor blades. The new rotor blades incurred a reduced service life when used spindles were installed; the remaining time on the new blades was reduced from 2,200 hours or 12 years to match the used spindles, which had about 1,439 hours or 5 years remaining. The rotor blades and spindles expire as a pair.
The mechanic was hired to re-install the main rotor blades on April 3, 2013. The day was spent installing the blades, making adjustments to the pitch change links, and performing a track and balance procedure. An approximate, uneventful 1-hour test flight was conducted prior to the accident flight.
Meteorological Information
The TMB 1553 weather observation, located 1.5 miles west of the accident site, reported wind from 120 degrees at 12 knots, gusting to 18 knots, visibility 10 statute miles, scattered clouds at 3,000 feet above ground level, temperature 29°C, dew point 20°C, and an altimeter setting of 30.00 inches of mercury.
Wreckage and Impact Information
The helicopter came to rest upright in a parking lot on the corner of Southwest 128th Street and Southwest 122nd Avenue in Miami, Florida, on a heading of 105 degrees magnetic. The debris field extended 110 degrees at a distance of about 500 feet. A postcrash fire consumed a majority of the wreckage. Several components were located on the roofs of nearby industrial buildings.
Examination of the main rotor blades revealed thermal damage and impact marks. The red blade (serial 3043) showed a spindle fracture, pitch horn fracture, and pitch change link attachment hardware missing. The blue blade (serial 3034) exhibited thermal damage and delamination. The tail boom was severed by the main rotor system during flight, and the empennage remained attached to a 32-inch section of the tail boom. The tail rotor driveshaft was cut 8 inches aft of the flex coupling. Main rotor flight control continuity was confirmed except for the pitch link to swash plate connection for blade 3043, which had departed the helicopter.
The engine was examined and found to have continuity and compression. No preexisting anomalies were noted. The swash plate assembly for the red blade had a disconnected lower rod end from the swash plate; the attaching hardware was not recovered.
Additional Information
According to a pilot-rated witness at the hangar during maintenance, the pilot was upset during the day due to conversations with the helicopter manufacturer about the installation of refurbished spindles on new blades, and because the helicopter's downtime was costing $10,000 a month in lost revenue. The witness observed the mechanic adjust the pitch change rods.
Medical and Pathological Information
Postmortem examinations performed by the Miami-Dade Medical Examiner's office reported the cause of death for both the pilot and pilot-rated mechanic as blunt force injuries. Forensic toxicology tests by the FAA's Civil Aerospace Medical Institute were negative for carbon monoxide, cyanide, drugs, and ethanol.
Tests and Research
Components from the rotor head system were sent to the NTSB Materials Laboratory for examination. All fractures were consistent with overstress, and no preexisting cracking was noted. The pitch change link attachment hole for the red blade appeared intact and free of damage, covered with black sooty deposits. The pitch link attachment hardware was missing from the attachment to the red blade side of the swash plate.