Schweizer 269C 1 N2110J accident near Titusville, Florida

Probable cause

The flight instructor’s inadvertent side-loading of the left skid while demonstrating a running landing, which resulted in a bending overstress fracture of the left skid tube and a subsequent roll-over.

NTSB analysis

During an instructional flight, the flight instructor successfully demonstrated one running landing to the student and then returned to the same area to demonstrate a second running landing. A few seconds after ground contact, the weight of the helicopter began to shift forward, which is typical, so the flight instructor slightly raised the collective. With the weight of the helicopter forward and about half of the forward speed dissipated, the helicopter suddenly pitched down and then rolled left. The flight instructor raised the collective slightly more in an attempt to reduce friction, but the helicopter continued rolling left, and the main rotor contacted the ground.

Examination revealed that the left skid tube had fractured due to bending overstress and that the left skid toe had deflected inboard relative to the strut and remainder of the tube. It is likely that the fracture occurred during the running landing. Although the helicopter was equipped with two recording devices capable of retaining data, neither of the devices recorded and retained data for the accident sequence; therefore, the amount of g-loading that the helicopter sustained during the landing sequence could not be determined.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for ERA14LA101 for the full record.