At the beginning of July—quoting TVN24.pl—we reported that the pilot whose helicopter crashed in May in a field between Tomaszów Bolesławiecki and Kruszyn did not have a license to fly the aircraft, and that the case was being handled by the District Prosecutor’s Office in Bolesławiec and the aircraft accident investigation commission.
A resolution has been issued by the State Commission for Aircraft Accident Investigation. According to the Commission, the most probable cause of the incident was interruption of the main rotor thrust caused by the pilot accidentally twisting the throttle lever, influenced by factors including: a lack of proper helicopter training (by a person who held no aviation qualifications, including instructor qualifications); the pilot’s very limited helicopter flight time; the pilot’s lack of experience in autorotational helicopter landings; and significant unevenness of the ground at the landing site.
The document also states:
According to the pilot’s account, the flight was conducted at an altitude of 500 feet above ground level at a cruising speed of 50 kts. The pilot then directed the helicopter southwest of the village of Twardocice, where there were potato fields, over which he made a right-hand circuit because, as he stated, “…the helicopter does not tolerate turns to the left…”. […] The helicopter struck the ground with its skid and tail rotor, landed hard (fell), and tipped onto its right side. It crashed in the immediate vicinity of a road, from which its flight was observed by a driver passing in a car. The agronomist passenger was thrown out through the front windshield, while the pilot, falling through the door, was pinned by the overturning helicopter. The pilot and passenger were not wearing seat belts. As the pilot recounted, the helicopter’s previous owner, who was also his “pseudo-instructor,” told him that seat belts were not fastened in this type of helicopter (!) [podkreślenie PKBWL – przyp. „ii”]. […]
A significant fuel leak drenched the pilot, and only a lucky coincidence prevented a fatal fire.
Two people were injured in the accident, and the helicopter was destroyed. Witnesses, including the driver who observed the flight, lifted the helicopter, pulling the pilot out from underneath it, and notified the appropriate services by telephone. Upon arrival, the services assisted the injured and secured the helicopter wreckage and the accident site until representatives of PKBWL arrived. After questioning the pilot, and also taking into account his very limited experience with helicopter flights, the Commission concluded that the most probable cause of the incident was interruption of the main rotor thrust caused by the pilot twisting the throttle lever, which resulted in the consequences described above. […]
The Commission established that the pilot of the helicopter involved in the accident held a qualification certificate for an ultralight gyroplane pilot, valid until October 15, 2017. He also owned a gyroplane on which he had logged approximately 400 flight hours. The pilot held a class 3 aviation medical certificate. The examination had been conducted at the CM GOBL-L Aviation Medicine Center in Wrocław and was valid until July 20, 2013, indicating that the pilot had flown without a current aviation medical certificate.
The pilot had flown approximately 35 hours in the R-22 helicopter, training with its previous owner, who flew to his farm from near Poznań. In the Aviation Personnel Register Division and the Civil Aircraft Register Division of the Civil Aviation Authority, the previous owner was listed neither as aviation personnel nor as the helicopter’s owner. The helicopter bore British markings, but the previous owner had not informed the Civil Aviation Authority about flights in Polish airspace using British registration marks. This person, who “collects military aircraft” and “flies as much as he can,” is well known in aviation circles for training people on helicopters without any qualifications and for conducting commercial flights, while also offering “free services” in this field to state services—local authorities and even the police—for “monitoring the area” (!) [podkreślenia – PKBWL]. [...]
The State Commission for Aircraft Accident Investigation contacted the United States’ aircraft manufacturer accident investigation board (NTSB) and the helicopter’s previous user states, the United Kingdom and Germany. Based on the information received, the “historical outline” of the origin of its individual components presented below was prepared.
- The front section of the fuselage came from an R22 Alpha helicopter, serial no. 494 (registration N2241), built in October 1990; on June 9, 1994, this helicopter was seriously damaged in a hard landing;
- The tail boom came from an R22 Beta helicopter, serial no. 1378 (registration G-OLRT, formerly N401R), built in May 1990; the helicopter had recently been awaiting overhaul in the United Kingdom—its owner sold the tail boom (having bought a new one);
- The tail rotor blades, serial numbers 15221J and 15225H, came from an R22 Mariner helicopter, serial no. 2054M, built in 1992 and bearing registration G-YMBO (formerly OY-HFR, 1993–95); this helicopter was sold to Canada on December 18, 2012, and was most recently registered in Europe to Startrade GmbH, Siegen, Germany; the same blades were also used on an R22 Beta helicopter, serial no. 3889, built in 2005 (registration G-DGOD, formerly N29H); this helicopter was sold to the United States on January 15, 2013, and was most recently registered in Europe to Startrade GmbH, Siegen, Germany.
Let us recall: the incident occurred on May 19 between Tomaszów Bolesławiecki and Kruszyn. The helicopter, carrying two people, fell into one of the fields. The helicopter pilot probably wanted to land.
Both people aboard the helicopter were injured. An air ambulance transported the more seriously injured person to a hospital in Legnica. The other person was taken to a hospital in Bolesławiec.
We will return to the subject.
(information: PKBWL/ii)