Aircraft Accident/Incident Report

Whitesburg, Georgia 30185
Saturday, February 24, 2001 17:03 EST

The purpose of the flight was to photograph the parent's house of the adult passenger; the flight was returning when the accident occurred. While descending for approach to a ball field about 250 to 300 feet above ground level (agl) at an indicated airspeed between 60-65 knots, the helicopter yawed. He corrected the yaw with anti-torque pedal and noted that the engine rpm and main rotor rpm needles were "split"; the main rotor rpm was in the green arc and the engine rpm was indicating zero. He rolled the throttle to the right towards the fuel-on position, then lowered full collective and maintained 40-45 knots while descending for an autorotative landing to the down sloping road. He cleared a bridge ahead and at approximately 15 feet agl, he applied aft cyclic to decelerate "somewhat", and pulled full collective. He touched down at an indicated airspeed between 20 and 30 knots on the road that curved to the left and later reported, "we didn't hit real easy." He lowered full collective after touchdown and while sliding, the right skid contacted grass on the side of the road causing the right skid to collapse. The helicopter then rolled onto its right side and slid approximately 4-5 feet before coming to rest. There was no postcrash fire or fuel leakage. Examination of the helicopter by an FAA Airworthiness Inspector revealed 8-9 gallons of fuel on board; the carburetor bowl was found approximately 1/2 full with a slight amount of contamination. The engine driven fuel pump would not produce 2 psi flow and would not produce any flow with a minor restriction. Additionally, the auxiliary fuel pump strainer was "so clogged and corroded it had to be removed with a metal hook and screw driver." The helicopter was inspected last in accordance with a 100-Hour inspection that was signed off on January 5, 2001; the helicopter had accumulated approximately 24 hours since the inspection at the time of the accident. Review of the helicopter flight manual pertaining to engine failure when flying above 325 feet agl revealed to maintain 50-60 mph glide speed and to pull cyclic stick steadily back at approximately 75 feet agl. Additionally, "when 10-15 feet above the landing surface, level the helicopter with forward cyclic stick and then apply collective pitch, as necessary, to cushion the landing impact." The flight manual also states, "To reduce the rate of descent and forward speed during an autorotation landing, the helicopter's flight path should be flared or leveled out, prior to ground contact." Excerpts from the flight manual is an attachment to this report.

The improper emergency procedure performed by the pilot due to his electing to perform a run-on landing resulting in excessive airspeed at touchdown and subsequent roll-over following ground contact with grass. A contributing factor was the inadequate 100-Hour inspection performed last to the helicopter resulting in the total loss of engine power due to fuel starvation.