Bell 206 N165BH accident near Thomaston, Georgia

Probable cause

The loss of tail rotor control due to a fractured pin in the tail rotor control system; the reason the pin fractured could not be determined as the fractured pin was lost in shipping.

NTSB analysis

The commercial pilot performed a right pedal turn to land the helicopter on a truck-mounted platform, and, just before touchdown, a pin that connected a push-pull tube to the left anti-torque pedal broke resulting in a loss of directional control. The pilot maneuvered the helicopter away from the truck to avoid striking his employees and tried unsuccessfully to land back on the truck's platform. He then repositioned away from the truck, closed the throttle, and lowered the collective to land, and the main rotor blades struck the side of the truck.

Although this make and model of helicopter is typically flown from the right seat, the accident helicopter was equipped with a left-hand "command" kit, and the pilot was flying it from the left seat. In addition, the helicopter was equipped with a tail rotor pedal lockout kit, which was designed to disconnect and lockout the tail rotor pedals to prevent interference by a passenger seated in the copilot's seat, which was, in this helicopter, the right seat. Photographs of the tail rotor pedal assembly revealed that the left expandable pin, which was a part of the tail rotor pedal lockout kit, had fractured, which disconnected the left anti-torque pedal from the tail rotor control system. Fracture analysis could not be performed on the broken pin because the pin was lost in shipping. Therefore, the failure mode for the pin could not be determined; however, it is built to the same strength as the bolts that it is intended to replace.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for ERA15LA374 for the full record.