Pilot Debrief

ROBINSON HELICOPTER R22 BETA near West Palm Beach, FL — 2011-07-10

Final reportERA11LA392
Sign in to save
Date
2011-07-10
Location
West Palm Beach, FL, USA
Airport
PBI
Aircraft
ROBINSON HELICOPTER R22 BETA
Registration
N10786
Category
Helicopter
Highest injury
Minor
Fatalities
0
Phase of flight
Initial climb

Probable cause

Separation of the auxiliary fuel tank cap, which entered the tail rotor system. Contributing to the accident was the lack of a fuel tank cap restraint.

NTSB narrative

During initial climb, about 200 feet above the ground, the helicopter's auxiliary fuel tank cap separated and entered the tail rotor system. The tail rotor became unbalanced and partially separated. The pilot subsequently entered an autorotation as the horizontal and vertical stabilizers also separated, and the helicopter landed hard. The auxiliary fuel tank cap was not serviced prior to the accident flight and the pilot reported that he checked the security of the auxiliary and main fuel tank caps during preflight inspection. The separated fuel cap was recovered and did not contain a restraining chain and gasket. The main fuel tank cap remained secured throughout the accident sequence and examination of that cap revealed that it did contain a gasket but not a chain. The helicopter manufacturer ceased installing restraining chains about 18 years prior to the accident; however, the accident helicopter was produced about 10 months before that and should have left the factory with fuel tank cap restraining chains. Review of the helicopter's maintenance records did not reveal any instance of the fuel cap restraining chains being removed in the field. Additionally, the investigation could not determine if the auxiliary fuel tank cap gasket was absent prior to the accident flight or separated during impact with the tail rotor.

Analysis

Primary failure mode
Mechanical failure
First missed decision gate
Ensuring fuel cap was properly secured before flight could have prevented the accident.

NTSB coding

Evidence available

  • 3 docket documents
View NTSB final reportView NTSB docket

Docket documents3

Related mishaps