What happened

On 23 January 2015, the pilot of a Robinson R22 helicopter, registered VH-ZBH, prepared for a private flight to inspect a property at Herbertvale, Queensland, with one passenger on board. Nothing abnormal was found during the pre-flight inspection of the helicopter. About 35 L of fuel was on board the helicopter, and the pilot conducted a fuel drain with nil contaminants found. At about 0600 Eastern Standard Time (EST), the pilot started the engine. All indications were normal throughout the run-up checks.

The pilot then increased the power to 104% for take-off and the helicopter lifted off into a low hover. The pilot reported that the helicopter responded normally and he turned the helicopter 90° to the north to depart. The helicopter transitioned from the hover to forward flight, moving about 10 m forwards and climbed to about 20 ft above ground level. The engine then lost power and the pilot detected vibration. He observed the rotor rpm decreasing and the low rotor rpm warning sounded.

The pilot immediately wound on throttle and lowered the collective^[1] in an attempt to increase the rotor rpm and to ensure the helicopter cleared a fence. He then prepared for an emergency landing. The rear of the skids touched down first and the helicopter skidded forwards. As the helicopter still had forward momentum, the pilot then pulled back on the cyclic^[2] to prevent the helicopter rolling over forwards, and it became airborne, moved forwards and yawed right, and bounced again before coming to rest upright (Figure 1).

The helicopter was substantially damaged due to the impact on the skids, and the pilot and passenger were uninjured.

Engineering inspection

A post-accident engineering inspection did not reveal any cause of the engine loss of power.

Figure 1: Damage to VH-ZBH

Source: Owner

Safety message

The pilot in this incident had recently completed a check flight including practice autorotations. The avoidance of injury and handling of the autorotation highlights the benefits of practice. The following links provide information regarding practice autorotations:

• www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/hai-convention-news/2012-02-13/instructor-pilots-give-guidance-autorotation-training

• www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/aviation-international-news/2013-05-01/astar-accident-shines-light-autorotation-training

• www.aviationtoday.com/rw/training/specialty/Flight-Training-Tips-Dancing-With-the-Devil_13632.html

• www.faa.gov/documentLibrary/media/Advisory_Circular/AC_61-140.pdf

• www.faasafety.gov/files/gslac/library/documents/2011/Aug/56414/FAA%20P-8740-71%20Planning%20Autorotations%20[hi-res]%20branded.pdf

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1. A primary helicopter flight control that simultaneously affects the pitch of all blades of a lifting rotor. Collective input is the main control for vertical velocity.
2. A primary helicopter flight control that is similar to an aircraft control column. Cyclic input tilts the main rotor disc varying the attitude of the helicopter and hence the lateral direction.