Event GAA18CA107

Factual narrative

The pilot reported that, while hovering the helicopter to park between three stationary helicopters, he had been given the signal for a 180 degree "pedal turn" by the ground crew. As the helicopter was about to touchdown, he felt a shudder in the airframe, immediately rolled the throttle closed, and completed an emergency shutdown. A post-accident examination revealed that the tail rotor blades struck the main blades of a stationary helicopter. The helicopter sustained substantial damage to the tail rotor and main rotor systems. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot reported that, while hovering the helicopter to park between three stationary helicopters, the ground crew gave him the signal for a 180° "pedal turn." As the helicopter was about to touch down, he felt a shudder in the airframe. He then immediately rolled the throttle closed and completed an emergency shutdown. Postaccident examination revealed that the tail rotor blades struck the main blades of a stationary helicopter, which likely caused the shudder felt by the pilot. The helicopter sustained substantial damage to the tail rotor and main rotor systems. 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-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C
• F Personnel issues-Action/decision-Info processing/decision-Expectation/assumption-Ground crew - F
• — Personnel issues-Task performance-Communication (personnel)-Issuing instructions-Ground crew
• — Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-Aircraft-Effect on operation