NTSB CAROL · Event
Event WPR22LA146
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
The pilot’s failure to maintain helicopter control while on the ground when his attention was diverted, which resulted in a dynamic rollover.
Factual narrative
The pilot in the helicopter reported that, during a night solo training flight, the helicopter was on the ground with the throttle rolled on and full collective friction applied when he used a flashlight to view the Hobbs meter. Unbeknownst to him, the collective crept up, the helicopter rolled to the right and dynamically rolled over. The helicopter sustained substantial damage to the horizontal stabilizer, and the main rotor system. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the helicopter that would have precluded normal flight 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-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot
- — Aircraft-Aircraft propeller/rotor-Rotorcraft flight control-(general)-Unintentional use/operation
- — Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Pitch control-Not attained/maintained
- — Personnel issues-Psychological-Attention/monitoring-Attention-Pilot
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_2022_WPR22LA146.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
Full investigation docket on
data.ntsb.gov ↗.
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