Incident Overview
A helicopter experienced an accident during a training flight while the flight instructor was demonstrating simulated 180° right turn autorotations.
Sequence of Events
According to the flight instructor, during the entry of the third autorotation, the helicopter's attitude was excessively nose low and the rate of descent was high. He initiated a power-on recovery, but the flare was performed too late. He applied forward cyclic to level the skids and increased collective to its mechanical limit. Despite these actions, the helicopter touched down, and one of the main rotor blades struck the tailboom, resulting in substantial damage to that component.
Pilot Remarks
In the National Transportation Safety Board's Pilot Aircraft Accident Report, the instructor stated, "The event could have been avoided by recovering the autorotation sooner and doing a go-around."
Operator Report
The operator reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation.