Event GAA17CA404

Factual narrative

The pilot of the helicopter reported that, during the landing on the unimproved dirt parking lot, dust started to kick up, and he transitioned to looking through the "chin bubble" for a visual point of reference. When the helicopter was about 5 to 6ft. above the ground, the pilot felt a sudden impact, followed by subsequent impacts from the two additional rotor blades impacting what later was found to be a tree. The helicopter "violently" fell to the ground and rolled onto its left side. The helicopter sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and main rotor system. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot of the helicopter reported that, during the landing on the unimproved dirt parking lot, dust started to kick up, and he transitioned to looking through the "chin bubble" for a visual point of reference. When the helicopter was about 5 to 6 ft above the ground, the pilot felt a sudden impact, followed by subsequent impacts from the two additional rotor blades impacting what was later found to be a tree. The helicopter "violently" fell to the ground and rolled onto its left side. The helicopter sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and main rotor system. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions 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).

• C Personnel issues-Psychological-Attention/monitoring-Monitoring environment-Pilot - C
• C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Altitude-Not attained/maintained - C
• C Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-Tree(s)-Effect on operation - C
• — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Ceiling/visibility/precip-Obscuration-Effect on personnel