Accident
On April 12, 2013, at about 1645 mountain standard time, a Bell OH-58C helicopter, registration N119FT, experienced a hard landing during a practice autorotation near Deer Valley Airport in Phoenix, Arizona. The helicopter was being operated as a public-use flight by the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office. The certified flight instructor and the private pilot were not injured, but the helicopter sustained substantial damage.
Flight Details
The local instructional flight had departed from Deer Valley Airport at about 0615. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed. The flight performed several maneuvers before the CFI instructed the pilot to complete the last practice autorotation of the day, which was intended to be a power recovery.
Accident Sequence
With the helicopter at about 500 feet above ground level, the pilot initiated the maneuver by lowering the collective and rolling the throttle to idle power. As the helicopter descended below 60 feet agl, the CFI told the pilot to increase engine power. The pilot had a delayed response to roll the throttle back to a full power setting, and the low rotor horn began to sound.
The pilot stated that he did not believe there was enough time for a power recovery and instead committed to performing a full touchdown. The helicopter touched down and slid about 6 feet. The skids dug into soft dirt, causing the nose to pitch down. The main rotor blades then severed the tailboom.
Post-Accident Reports
The pilot reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation. He additionally reported that he thought the accident may have been prevented if he had more emergency procedures training, and if he had begun the power recovery at a higher altitude.