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NYC06CA110

2006-05-06 · Hampton Roads, Virginia, United States · Serious · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport PVG

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The inadvertent activation of the helicopter manufacturer's improperly located, unguarded fuel shutoff switch.

Factual narrative

During a flight test of the experimental helicopter, the pilot inadvertently shut off the fuel supply to the engine while flaring to land, approximately 15 feet above the ground. The helicopter impacted the ground tail first, the landing gear cross tubes collapsed and broke at the fuselage attach points, and the main rotor struck the tail boom. Examination of the helicopter revealed that the fuel shut off switch was unguarded and mounted on the cyclic. During a flight test of the experimental helicopter, the pilot inadvertently shut off the fuel supply to the engine while flaring to land, approximately 15 feet above the ground. The helicopter impacted the ground tail first, the landing gear cross tubes collapsed and broke at the fuselage attach points, and the main rotor struck the tail boom. Examination of the helicopter revealed that the fuel shut off switch was unguarded and mounted on the cyclic. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2006_NYC06CA110.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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