Hard Landing and Skid Failure of a Guimbal Cabri G2 in Fleurac (F-HBEA)

Flight Details and Incident Overview On July 6, 2013, at approximately 09:00 local time, a private Guimbal Cabri G2 helicopter, registration F-HBEA, was involved in an accident at Fleurac (24) in France. The aircraft was operating a general aviation flight with a pilot and one passenger on board. The pilot and passenger were injured, and the helicopter sustained heavy damage. ## Flight Sequence The pilot departed from the private heliport at La Valette (19) at approximately 08:30 for a local flight toward the town of Le Bugue (24), located 40 km to the southwest. During the return leg, the pilot reported hearing an abnormal noise in his headset. Concerned about the source of the noise, he decided to make a precautionary landing in a field. On a short final approach, the helicopter touched down hard on the ground. The left skid broke, and the helicopter rolled onto its left side. ## Pilot Testimony and Site Examination The pilot stated that before landing, he overflew the field to assess the surface condition, identify potential obstacles, and estimate the wind direction. He concluded that the wind was coming from the east/northeast sector. During a very short final approach, his passenger informed him that a side hatch was open. At the same time, the pilot felt that the ground was rising rapidly toward him. He gripped the flight controls tightly but was unable to prevent the helicopter from making abrupt contact with the ground. He explained that he had not sufficiently anticipated the power application because he was surprised by the upward slope of the field. Before takeoff, he had placed equipment in the left storage compartment and believed he had not closed the door properly. The field where the accident occurred was located at an altitude of 1,500 feet. Skid marks left in the ground over several meters were oriented on a heading of 320°. Examination of the wreckage indicated that the engine was providing power at the time of impact. Contact with the ground caused the static failure of the left front skid crossbar, which penetrated the cabin floor on the passenger side. No prior malfunction was identified. ## Performance, Pilot, and Weather Information The helicopter's mass and center of gravity were within the limits recommended by the manufacturer. At a mass of approximately 620 kg at the time of the accident, with a temperature of 20 °C and at the altitude of the field, the manufacturer's performance curves for hovering in ground effect permitted a maximum landing mass of 700 kg. The pilot held a private helicopter pilot license obtained in 2001 and had a total of 1,090 flight hours, including 350 hours on type and 24 hours in the preceding three months. Estimated weather conditions at the site were: wind from 060° to 090° at 5 knots, CAVOK, visibility greater than 10 km, temperature 20 °C, dew point 15 °C, and QNH 1024 hPa. ## Findings and Contributing Factors The investigation showed that the approach was conducted with a wind that, although light, was coming from the right rear sector. Additionally, under the prevailing conditions, the helicopter's performance left the pilot with a reduced power margin. The observed sink during final approach was probably due to a late action on the collective control. The hard landing resulted in the failure of the landing gear, which led to the helicopter rolling over. The accident resulted from the combination of the following factors: - Insufficient consideration of the wind direction, leading the pilot to make an approach with a tailwind component; - An upward slope not detected during the reconnaissance pass; - Lack of anticipation in applying power during the final speed reduction; - Distraction caused by the passenger's report of an anomaly.