Robinson R66 accident near Mechanicsburg, PA
On January 10, 2020, a Robinson R66 (helicopter) was involved in an accident near Mechanicsburg, PA. 2 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- January 10, 2020
- Place
- Mechanicsburg, PA
- Aircraft
- Robinson R66 · Helicopter
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 40.228°N, 77.020°W
- NTSB ID
- 20200109X20857
Official records · ERA20FA074
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
Air traffic control records
- Chronological Summary Of Flight Communications: Document (PDF), on ntsb.gov
- NTSB Prepared Partial Transcription Of Communications: Transcript (PDF), on ntsb.gov
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn January 9, 2020, about 2029 eastern standard time, a Robinson R66, N450MC, was destroyed after it was involved in an accident near Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. The private pilot and the passenger were fatally injured. The helicopter was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. According to a chronological summary of flight communications prepared by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), about 1954, the pilot contacted ground control at Martin State Airport (MTN), Baltimore, Maryland, and requested visual flight rules (VFR) flight following to Buffalo Niagara International Airport (BUF), Buffalo, New York, at 3,000 ft mean sea level (msl). About 1957, the pilot contacted local control at MTN and advised that the flight was ready to depart, and was then approved to do so. About 1959, the pilot was instructed to contact Potomac Approach Control. According to FAA automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B) data and a transcription of audio communications, the helicopter climbed to about 2,300 ft msl and proceeded on a north-northwesterly track. The helicopter remained at that altitude and on that track from about 2002 to 2023, during which time the pilot made initial contact with the Harrisburg approach sector. At 2023:15, the controller instructed the pilot to fly along a heading of 310°, and the helicopter turned to a northwest heading, consistent with the instruction. The helicopter’s altitude remained about the same until 2028:50, at which time the helicopter began descending. About 2029, radar contact with
Probable cause
A severe left roll excursion after the onset of pitch and roll oscillations, which were not arrested by the pilot for undetermined reasons. This resulted in main rotor blade contact with the airframe and a subsequent inflight breakup of the helicopter.
More accidents in PA
- Boeing B-737-300, Sep 8, 1994
- Boeing 757, Sep 11, 2001
- British Aerospace J-3101, May 21, 2000
- Bell UH-1N, May 29, 2008
- Beech A36, Jul 30, 1989
Browse: Pennsylvania · Robinson 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.
