The pilot was undergoing his initial helicopter licence training
and was authorised to fly three solo circuits at Mangalore. A
helicopter flying instructor briefed him for the flight. The engine
start was conducted by the pilot but monitored by the instructor,
who vacated the helicopter shortly after.
As the helicopter started to lift off the ground into a hover,
it rolled to the right until the main rotor struck the ground. The
main rotor and transmission then separated from the fuselage, which
landed on its right side, facing in the same direction as it was
parked. Several rescuers reached the accident site within seconds
and shut down the engine. They released the pilot's lap seat belt
and moved him from the wreckage. A short time later, the pilot died
of his injuries.
The autopsy report attributed the cause of death to head
injuries. The pilot's injuries and damage to the aircraft were
consistent with his head having impacted the upper door surround
structure. The pilot did not have his upper body restraint harness
secured. The aircraft checklist contained a requirement that the
pilot's seat harness be secured before the engine was started. The
flying school's procedures required that the pilot's complete
harness, including the shoulder restraint, be secured before the
engine was started.
Initial examination of the wreckage disclosed that the left side
of the front of the cockpit had been severed. The right side and
rear of the cockpit were intact and relatively undamaged. The skids
were undamaged. Both main rotor blades had broken into several
pieces and were lying on the tarmac near the fuselage. Abrasion
marks on the rotor blades and impact marks on the ground indicated
that the helicopter had rolled to the right until the main rotor
had contacted the tarmac. There were no marks on the tarmac to
indicate that the skids had been dragged sideways, had sunk into
the tarmac surface, or had stuck to the surface.
Examination of the wreckage did not reveal any pre-existing
defects or malfunctions that would have precluded other than normal
operation. An examination of the maintenance records indicated that
all required maintenance had been performed, and there were no
defects listed on the maintenance release.
The pilot was an experienced commercial pilot with a total
flying time of more than 4,000 hours on fixed-wing, multi-engine
aircraft. He was correctly licensed and authorised for the
flight.
The pilot commenced training for his private pilot licence
(helicopter) on 9 May 1997 and continued training at irregular
intervals over the next 11 months. During this period he continued
to fly fixed-wing aircraft as part of his employment. At the time
of the accident, he had completed 13.6 hours on the Bell 206 type,
including 0.6 hours of solo flying. All his helicopter training had
been on this aircraft type. The pilot had not flown a helicopter
for 21 days before the accident flight.
Two witnesses saw the helicopter attempt to lift off the ground.
One reported seeing both skids lift off the ground before the
helicopter began to roll to the right. A second witness reported
seeing only the left skid leave the ground before the helicopter
began to roll.
