N8347V – Robinson R22 Beta – 2007-02-26 NTSB Accident Report

On February 26, 2007, a Robinson R22 Beta (N8347V) was involved in an incident near Melbourne, FL. All 2 people aboard were uninjured. The aircraft sustained substantial damage.

The National Transportation Safety Board determined the probable cause of this incident to be: The flight instructor's inadequate remedial action following a loss of control in flight. A factor to the accident is that the dual student did not maintain directional control of the helicopter while manuevering, which subsequently caused the instructor to lose control of the helicopter.

The helicopter spun to the left 2 to 2.5 times during lift off, contacted the ground in a level attitude then spun about 180 degrees causing damage to one of the skids and the tailboom. The instructor reported that he let the student have as much control during lift off that he, the instructor, was comfortable allowing. The instructor reported that he told the student to "raise the collective slowly and correct for any movement." The instructor stated that while lifting off, the helicopter "started to spin to the left. I think I over reacted to the controls, then over corrected." The instructor reported the helicopter spun rapidly two and a half full turns before contact with the ground.

This incident is documented in NTSB report CHI07CA077. AviatorDB cross-references NTSB investigation data with FAA registry records to provide comprehensive safety information for aircraft N8347V.