Goldy Posted March 18, 2008 Report Share Posted March 18, 2008 Not sure of the details yet, but apparently this guy hit the tail rotor into a pole, severing the last foot or so of the tailboom off, and somehow got it back on the ground. The 44 doesnt even look damaged, not even a smile on its skids...its just missing a tailrotor. Luck or skill, thats a hell of a landing. (not so sure about hitting a fixed object though!) Goldy http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/.../NEWS/803180317 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorCalHeliKid Posted March 18, 2008 Report Share Posted March 18, 2008 I'd love to have video of this. Check out the main rotor mast fairing...appears that the MR is bent aft a bit. Weird~ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
delorean Posted March 18, 2008 Report Share Posted March 18, 2008 Gotta love the ignorant media..... "...saw the helicopter teeter back and forth in the air before it landed with a crash on the runway. But he said it appeared the pilot, who has not been identified, kept control the entire time." There's no way he was more than few feet off the ground at that fuel pit.....hit the pole, and lowered the collective or chopped the throttle to stop the spin. See the t/r laying on the ground in front of that airplane? It was probably a good thing he had already that fueled. Because, two people up front, low on fuel, and a NO TAIL would have created a major nose low CG issue. Could have been a lot worse.....good reaction to a major screw up though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BOATFIXERGUY Posted March 18, 2008 Report Share Posted March 18, 2008 I agree. Doesn't look like he went flying anywhere. The Tail rotor is only a few feet away. Must have been pretty exciting loosing the T/R next to a fuel tank! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HelliBoy Posted March 19, 2008 Report Share Posted March 19, 2008 Can someone explain to me why 45 gal of fuel leaked out of this helicopter? Does every robinson incident end up with a major fuel spill and its just the lucky ones that dont ignite? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldy Posted March 19, 2008 Author Report Share Posted March 19, 2008 Can someone explain to me why 45 gal of fuel leaked out of this helicopter? Does every robinson incident end up with a major fuel spill and its just the lucky ones that dont ignite? I was kinda curious about that too.... the only thing I came up with is the flex coupling near the transmission failed due to the shock of the tail strike. That might lead to a drive shaft still spinning just an inch or two from the fuel tanks....really just a guess at this point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BOATFIXERGUY Posted March 19, 2008 Report Share Posted March 19, 2008 Didn't Robinson release a safety bulletin about wearing nomex due to all of the post crash fires? Is that because of a fault in the tank design or rotating components near the tank? I'm not a Robinson expert, so I have no idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RotorWeed Posted March 19, 2008 Report Share Posted March 19, 2008 What's a "back rotor"? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DEMO Posted March 19, 2008 Report Share Posted March 19, 2008 What's a "back rotor"? Behind the front one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klmmarine Posted March 19, 2008 Report Share Posted March 19, 2008 What's a "back rotor"? This is a "Back Rotor" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xPA2k3qPe-4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DEMO Posted March 19, 2008 Report Share Posted March 19, 2008 This is a "Back Rotor" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xPA2k3qPe-4 He needs to recalculate his weight and balance Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FULL TOUCH DOWN Posted March 19, 2008 Report Share Posted March 19, 2008 Vertical mag is saying that the flight was a SOLO flight under the supervision of a CFI on the ground. If that is true I would have to wonder why you would let a student pilot on a solo take off from a position like that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldy Posted March 20, 2008 Author Report Share Posted March 20, 2008 (edited) OK, I take it all back, I dont want to be flying anywhere near this guy ! This link has a better photo ( even though they call the R44 Raven a 2 seater!). You can see the light pole and where the main rotor struck it, which spun the ship around so the tail rotor could take a whack at it. Between a main rotor strike and a tail rotor strike, I would guess that driveshaft separated from the flex coupling and spun around into the fuel tanks, which only reside a few inches away. http://www.midhudsonnews.com/News/March08/...cc-18Mar08.html Of course, maybe he was just moving it from the fuel pit back to the hangar....then he wouldnt even have to report it to the NTSB !! I can read it now on Ebay.... For sale- R44 RAVEN, new tail assembly, new -4 blades. This one is ready to fly !! Edited March 20, 2008 by Goldy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BOATFIXERGUY Posted March 20, 2008 Report Share Posted March 20, 2008 OK, I take it all back, I dont want to be flying anywhere near this guy ! I can read it now on Ebay.... For sale- R44 RAVEN, new tail assembly, new -4 blades. This one is ready to fly !! HA! Funny! Maybe we need to start up a company like carfax... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
delorean Posted March 21, 2008 Report Share Posted March 21, 2008 Of course, maybe he was just moving it from the fuel pit back to the hangar....then he wouldnt even have to report it to the NTSB !! If it's off the ground, that's flying.....and it has to be reported. A mechanic or refueler can't hop in the helicopter and *fly* it from the pit to hangar without a pilot's certificate, so it's a real flight. I think the only exceptions are ground taxing an airplane (or wheeled helicopter I suppose) with the sole intention of relocating it without breaking ground. Even then, if it's 135, the feds are going to be involved. Either way--in the ground or air--it's an accident or incident. It's easier to argue it down to an incident if it's on the ground with no intention of flight. You can report incidents through FSS.....here's the link to read some of them: http://www.faa.gov/data_statistics/acciden...eliminary_data/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldy Posted March 21, 2008 Author Report Share Posted March 21, 2008 If it's off the ground, that's flying.....and it has to be reported. OK, its a sticky point. IF it were an airplane and he was moving it from the fuel pit to the hangar and he crashed it would not meet the definition of an accident and would NOT have to be reported ( 49CFR 830.2) ( No INTENTION of flight) If it was a helo with wheels on it, and you were taxiing on the ground, same thing. I guess its a bit of a stretch with an R44 and skids...Its kinda hard to move a helo even a foot off the ground without "flying" it...so your stuck. I had my FW brain on...or it was late, or I was heavily intoxicated....maybe both, when I wrote that! Goldy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperF Posted March 21, 2008 Report Share Posted March 21, 2008 If it was a helo with wheels on it, and you were taxiing on the ground, same thing. I guess its a bit of a stretch with an R44 and skids...Its kinda hard to move a helo even a foot off the ground without "flying" it...so your stuck. I had my FW brain on...or it was late, or I was heavily intoxicated....maybe both, when I wrote that! Goldy just taxi it with the skids on the ground. is that flight?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Posted March 22, 2008 Report Share Posted March 22, 2008 HA! Funny! Maybe we need to start up a company like carfax... Helifax....?? Isn't that the name of a city in Canada. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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