Event
On 22 July 2019 at 13:57 UTC, a Robinson R66 helicopter with Russian registration RA-07370 crashed into the Tyrrhenian Sea approximately 6 nautical miles southwest of Gorgona Island. The helicopter had departed from Massa Cinquale (LILQ), where it had made a stop for refueling, and was en route to a private helipad in Porto Cervo, Sardinia. The flight was conducted under Visual Flight Rules at an altitude of about 500 feet above ground. The helicopter impacted the water and was destroyed. Search and rescue teams located the wreckage, which was partially kept afloat by the helicopter’s emergency pop-out floats. The passenger was found deceased inside the helicopter, while the pilot was missing.
Aircraft and Pilot Information
The aircraft was a Robinson R66, a five-seat, single-engine helicopter powered by a Rolls-Royce 250-C300/A1 (RR300) turboshaft engine. It was equipped with skid landing gear and emergency pop-out floats. The helicopter was co-owned by the pilot, who held a 51% ownership share since December 2016.
The pilot, a 37-year-old Russian national, held a valid private pilot license issued by the Russian aviation authority in 2016 and a valid second-class medical certificate. He had type ratings for the R44 and R66 since 2017 and an ICAO English proficiency level of 5. Total flight hours and specific experience on the R66 were not available.
The passenger, also Russian, was examined postmortem; toxicological tests showed no substances that could have caused impairment or contributed to death.
Aftermath
The helicopter was completely destroyed. The pilot remained missing following the accident. The investigation was conducted by the Italian National Agency for Flight Safety (ANSV). No probable cause was determined in the published report.