AAIB investigation to Rotorway Executive 162F, G-OHOV
Power loss followed by rollover on landing, Street Farm, Takeley, Essex, 30 March 2021.
Summary:
On the fifth and final of a series of test hovers to ‘bed-in’ recently replaced drive belts, the helicopter appeared to lose power. The helicopter was at a height of about 10 ft when this occurred, and the pilot carried out a run-on landing. The helicopter touched down on soft rutted earth which prevented the skids from sliding and they dug-in. The helicopter tipped forward and the rotating main rotor blades contacted the ground. As a result, the helicopter was ‘violently’ tipped onto its side causing disruption to the main rotor blades and tail boom. No fault or malfunction was found with the helicopter. An analysis of data held within the engine control system could not positively determine the cause for the loss of power although a fault code associated with a Central Processing Unit (CPU) error was registered by one of the engine controllers.
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