Pilot Debrief

BELL HELICOPTER TEXTRON 206L-1 near Payson, AZ — 2013-08-28

Final reportWPR13LA390
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Date
2013-08-28
Location
Payson, AZ, USA
Airport
PAN
Aircraft
BELL HELICOPTER TEXTRON 206L-1
Registration
N2018R
Category
Helicopter
Highest injury
Serious
Fatalities
0
Phase of flight
Cruise

Probable cause

A partial loss of engine power due to an overtemperature event that thermally damaged the turbine blades and vanes, which resulted in a hard landing.

NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that the engine lost power while the helicopter was in cruise flight about 1,500 ft above ground level. He subsequently entered an autorotation and performed an emergency off-airport landing. During the descent, he maneuvered the helicopter to avoid obstacles; the helicopter subsequently landed hard, and the tailboom separated. Examination of the engine revealed that the outer portion of the engine's first-stage turbine blades and three vanes from the first-stage nozzle were thermally damaged. The turbine blades' microstructure exhibited signatures consistent with an engine overtemperature event; however, it could not be determined when the overtemperature damage occurred. The postaccident examination of the airframe and engine revealed no additional evidence of a mechanical malfunction that would have precluded normal operation. Weight and balance calculations revealed that, when the helicopter departed, it was over its allowable gross takeoff weight but that it was under its allowable gross operational weight at the time of the engine power loss.

Analysis

Primary failure mode
Engine power loss
First missed decision gate
Pilot could have aborted the flight upon noticing engine power issues.

NTSB coding

Evidence available

  • 6 docket documents
View NTSB final reportView NTSB docket

Docket documents6

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