Accident Details
On 15 July 2011 at 0924 UTC, a Robinson R22 Beta, registration G-JERS, was involved in an accident at Cumbernauld Airport, Scotland. The helicopter was conducting a training flight with a student and an instructor on board. No passengers were carried.
Sequence of Events
The student was practising running landings on a grass area adjacent to the runway. The instructor had asked the student to lift the helicopter into the hover with forward motion. The student initiated the manoeuvre by applying a forward cyclic input. As the helicopter slid forward along the ground, it moved into an area of longer grass, causing the front of the skids to become caught. The student raised the collective in an effort to pull the helicopter free, but this caused the skids to dig in and initiated a forward rollover.
The instructor instinctively applied aft cyclic to stop the main rotor blades from hitting the ground, but this resulted in the blades striking the tail boom and disengaging the tail rotor drive. The helicopter then yawed rapidly and rolled over, finally coming to rest on its left side.
Injuries and Damage
The instructor sustained minor injuries; the student was not injured. The helicopter suffered extensive damage and was deemed beyond economic repair.
Pilot Experience
The commander, aged 40, held a Commercial Pilot's Licence and had 1,987 total flying hours, of which 1,846 were on type. His recent flying experience included 164 hours in the last 90 days and 45 hours in the last 28 days.
Contributory Factors
The instructor stated that, in his opinion, the lack of a dedicated helicopter training area at the airport was a contributory factor to the accident. However, no official probable cause has been determined by the investigation.