NTSB CAROL · Event
Event CEN24LA377
Registry · N8372F
FAA Aircraft Registry record.
Make / Model
MCDONNELL DOUGLAS HELICOPTER 369E
Year of manufacture
1991 · 33 years old at event
TCDS
H3WE · MD HELICOPTERS INC (MDHI)
Engine
ALLISON 250-C20 SER (420 hp)
Seats / Engines
4 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
19910915
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S AB74FF
Registrant of record
CITY OF HOUSTON POLICE DEPARTMENT
Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
The pilot’s improper recovery from a practice autorotation which resulted in a hard landing. Contributing to the accident was the instructor’s inadequate supervision of the pilot receiving instruction.
Factual narrative
During an instructional flight, the operator reported that during the practice autorotation, the pilot receiving instruction held the flare for too long and did not level the helicopter before touchdown. The helicopter landed hard and struck the tail on the ground which resulted in substantial damage to the empennage, tail boom, and tail rotor drive system. The operator reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions of failures with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12
NTSB Findings
Hierarchical cause / factor breakdown from the FAA bulk avdata database. Each finding tagged C (Cause) or F (Factor).
- — Personnel issues-Action/decision-Action-Incorrect action performance-Student/instructed pilot
- — Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Pitch control-Incorrect use/operation
- — Personnel issues-Psychological-Attention/monitoring-Monitoring other person-Instructor/check pilot
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_2024_CEN24LA377.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
Full investigation docket on
data.ntsb.gov ↗.
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