Robinson R44 Astro, G-TATY, 16 September 2005
Robinson R44 Astro, G-TATY
Summary:
The student pilot had departed from Denham airfield on his first solo cross-country exercise. About five minutes after the helicopter had taken off it was seen flying at a low height just to the south of the town of Amersham. Seven members of the public then saw G-TATY perform some energetic manoeuvres before it struck the ground in a nose-down attitude, coming to rest upright. The pilot received serious injuries and the helicopter was seriously damaged. Subsequent investigation found no technical fault with the helicopter that would have contributed to the accident. The weather had been fine but the reported surface wind at the time of the accident exceeded the manufacturer’s and operator’s limitations for a pilot of this experience. The pilot could not recall any of the events on the flight and it was not possible to conclude what caused the helicopter to descend from the cruise at about 1,500 feet amsl. However, the evidence indicated that the rotational speed of the rotor blades was below the ‘power on’ limits at the moment G-TATY struck the surface.
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