Helicopter crashed during “training maneuver”

In July, a helicopter crashed during a training exercise, killing two men. The crash was caused by an engine failure during the flight.

This is according to a preliminary report by the Air Accident Investigation Unit (AAIU).

The Accident occurred near Killucan, County Westmeath in the Republic of Ireland on 31 July.

An instructor and a student were on board the helicopter and were both killed when it crashed into a farm building.

The preliminary 11-page report does not contain an analysis of the conclusions.

A final report will be published in due course as the investigation into the incident continues.

The preliminary report states that the accident apparently occurred during a sixth autorotation maneuver during the training flight.

The report states that autorotation is part of flight training for novice pilots and is a technique for responding to an engine failure.

It states that an autorotative descent is a powerless maneuver in which the engine no longer supplies power to the main rotor.

The helicopter, a Bell 505 Jet Ranger X, with the student and instructor on board, left Weston Airport (EIWT) at approximately 2:00 p.m. local time for a training flight.

It was intended to be part of a series of flights to prepare the student for a sort of aptitude test for the Bell 505 helicopter type.

The helicopter moved predominantly westward and performed five maneuvers that appeared to be practice autorotations.

At around 2:25 p.m., while on a mission near Killucan, and apparently during a sixth practice autorotation, the helicopter “hit the surface of an agricultural field,” the report said.

The ball then flew forward at a height sufficient to overcome a boundary fence and hit the “gable wall of a farm building”.

The helicopter came to a stop nose down in the wall and roof of the building.

Both occupants were fatally injured.

The student had completed just over 100 hours of flight time during his training, all of which were on a Robinson 44 helicopter.

During the investigation, it was pointed out that the student had also completed three flights with the accident helicopter before the accident flight.

Witnesses reported seeing the helicopter descend quickly as if it was about to land before rising again, and “several reported hearing the helicopter's engine get quieter and then louder again.”

The descent and climb maneuvers were consistent with autorotation training, while the variation in engine noise was consistent with the helicopter's operation changing between idle and flight modes when initiating and ending autorotations, the report added.

A final report will be published in due course as the investigation into the incident continues.