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WPR25LA118

2025-03-25 · Hobbs, New Mexico, United States · Minor · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport HOB

Current FAA registration · N7530U

Make / Model
ROBINSON HELICOPTER R44 II
Year of manufacture
2004 · 21 years old at event
Engine
LYCOMING IO-540 SER (300 hp)
Seats / Engines
4 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
20040824
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S AA2799

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The student pilot’s loss of directional control during a hover, which resulted in an impact with terrain.

Factual narrative

The flight instructor reported that the student pilot was on going on a solo flight after being endorsed and completing a dual instruction flight. As the helicopter lifted into a hover, the instructor saw the student jerk the collective and the helicopter spun to the right. The student attempted to recover with cyclic control inputs, but the helicopter dynamically rolled over and impacted terrain. Subsequently, the fuselage and drivetrain sustained substantial damage. The student pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • — Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Directional control-Not attained/maintained
  • — Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Student/instructed pilot

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2025_WPR25LA118.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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