Rotorway 162F accident near Phoenix, AZ
On May 31, 1997, a Rotorway 162F (helicopter) was involved in an accident near Phoenix, AZ. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- May 31, 1997
- Place
- Phoenix, AZ
- Aircraft
- Rotorway 162F · Helicopter
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 33.680°N, 112.090°W
- NTSB ID
- 20001208X07963
Official records · LAX97LA197
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
Air traffic control records
- Communications Transcript: Transcript (PDF), on ntsb.gov
NTSB summary
History of Flight On May 31, 1997, at 0705 hours mountain standard time, a homebuilt experimental Rotorway 162F helicopter, N176BT, collided with the ground following an emergency descent at the Deer Valley Airport, Phoenix, Arizona. The aircraft was destroyed by the impact and postcrash fire. The pilot sustained fatal injuries. The aircraft was operated by the owner/builder as a local flight under 14 CFR Part 91 when the accident occurred. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and a VFR flight plan was not filed. The flight originated at Deer Valley Airport at 0620. According to the communications transcripts from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Air Traffic Control Tower, the pilot declared an emergency while inbound to the airport by transmitting "mayday" twice. The nature of the emergency was not made clear. There were several witnesses to the emergency descent and crash sequence. The first eyewitness interviewed stated that he was situated directly across the field from the accident site. He said he was watching the helicopter during the initial descent and noted that approximately 300 feet above ground level, the helicopter began to spin around. He estimated that it made about "four to five revolutions." He said it stopped spinning and then it began to fall. He stated he could hear the helicopter hit the ground "pretty hard." He contacted Westwind Aviation on the field to notify them of the accident. They reported that the crash had already been reported to the appropriate authorities. This eyewitness stated that he thought the pilot would "be able to sa
Probable cause
the owner/builder incorrectly installed the tail rotor drive pulley mounting scissors, overtorqued the pivot belts, did not perform the required maintenance lubrication of the pivot belts, and failed to perform adequate visual maintenance checks of these areas during the pre/postflight checks; the resultant overtemperature on the pulley idlers; eventual catastrophic failure of the drive belts; and
More accidents in AZ
- De Havilland DHC-6-300, Sep 27, 1989
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- Cessna 421C, Sep 2, 1995
Browse: Arizona · Rotorway aircraft
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
