Accident Details
On September 28, 2021, at 1900 eastern daylight time, a Robinson R44 II helicopter, registration N212HT, was substantially damaged when it impacted the ground near Miami, Florida. The private pilot sustained minor injuries, and the three passengers were not injured. The flight was conducted under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight.
Sequence of Events
The pilot rented the helicopter at Palm Beach County Park Airport (LNA), West Palm Beach, Florida, and flew to Miami Executive Airport (TMB), Miami, Florida, to pick up three passengers. After a sightseeing flight around the Miami area, the pilot returned to TMB and landed to deplane the passengers. He lowered the collective and began the shutdown procedure, first reducing the throttle to idle and applying collective friction. The pilot reported that his recollection from that point was “blurry,” as the helicopter began spinning and subsequently impacted the ground on its left side.
A passenger stated in a written report that once on the ground, the pilot was reducing the engine and preparing for shutdown when the helicopter suddenly began spinning. The passenger said the pilot attempted to regain control, but the spinning was “very powerful” before the helicopter became airborne and then crashed.
Two witnesses, a flight instructor and his student, observed the event from the ground. The instructor reported seeing the helicopter rotating around the mast “out of control” before descending to ground contact. The student stated that he observed the passenger in the left front seat remove his shoulder harnesses and headset; then the helicopter made a strong left turn, rotated uncontrollably around the main rotor mast, and took off without control before plummeting to the ground.
Surveillance video captured the accident from a front quartering view toward the right side of the cockpit. After touchdown, the coning of the rotor system reduced to a flat rotor disc. The passenger in the left front seat removed his shoulder harnesses and headset and moved the headset forward. The helicopter then began a rapid yaw to the left and rotated around the main rotor mast. After one full revolution, the helicopter lifted rapidly from the ground and climbed out of the camera’s view while continuing to rotate rapidly. Seconds later, it descended back into view in an uncontrolled descent. The main rotor disc severed the tailboom in two places ahead of the tail section, which included the tail rotor and tail rotor gearbox, before ground contact.
Pilot Information
The pilot held a private pilot certificate with a rating for rotorcraft-helicopter, issued based on his pilot certificate from the State of Israel. His most recent FAA second-class medical certificate was issued on March 10, 2021, at which time he declared 220 total hours of flight experience. A review of his logbook by an FAA aviation safety inspector estimated 178 total hours, with about 100 hours in the accident helicopter make and model and 78 in a Robinson R22, accrued over a 10-year span. Only two flights were recorded in 2021: one on May 1 in a Robinson R44 and another on July 3 in a Robinson R22, annotated as a “checkride.” The pilot had SFAR 73 Awareness training endorsements dated August 20, 2012, and December 6, 2013, but his logbook did not contain required endorsements to act as pilot-in-command in the Robinson R22 or R44 after receiving his private pilot certificate, as required annually. He also did not meet recency of flight experience requirements to carry passengers in the R44 at the time of the accident. Additionally, the inspector noted that the pilot conducted six flights between April 2020 and January 2021 without a valid medical certificate.
During a telephone interview, the pilot stated he did not remember his front seat passenger removing his seatbelts or headset. He could not recall where his left hand was placed when the helicopter started to rotate. When asked if his watch or clothing could have interfered with the collective control, he said no. He reported that the helicopter’s performance and handling were normal.
Aircraft and Weather Information
The helicopter was examined at the accident site by FAA inspectors. All major components were accounted for. The helicopter rested on its left side, with the cockpit and cabin area largely intact. The left windscreen was fractured and separated. Control continuity was confirmed from the flight controls to the main rotor head and to the tail rotor through the severed sections of the tailboom. A video study by an NTSB performance engineer showed that the main rotor speed remained constant near the nominal 408 rpm throughout the approach, landing, uncontrolled takeoff, and impact.
Weather recorded at TMB at 1051 included wind from 090° at 7 knots, temperature 26°C, and dewpoint 19°C.