On 24 Aug 2014, a ROBINSON HELICOPTER R22 BETA BETA operated by LA Helicopters Flight School was involved in an aviation accident near Long Beach, CA. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The student pilot's failure to maintain helicopter control during a practice hover. Contributing to the accident was the flight instructor's delayed remedial reaction. This summary draws on records from NTSB; 12 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.
During a hovering practice session, a student pilot lost control of the helicopter, causing a right yaw. The flight instructor did not intervene timely, resulting in tail rotor ground contact and substantial tail boom damage.
Accident Details
A flight instructor reported that during a practice hovering exercise, the student pilot lost control of the helicopter. The aircraft began to yaw to the right as control was lost.
Instructor Actions
The flight instructor acknowledged that they did not act in a timely manner to regain control of the helicopter and prevent the tail rotor from contacting the ground during the attempted recovery.
Aircraft Damage
As a result of the tail rotor striking the ground, the helicopter sustained substantial damage to its tail boom. The flight instructor stated that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions that would have prevented normal operation of the helicopter.