Robinson R-22 accident near Nashville, Tennessee, December 11, 1982
On December 11, 1982 at about 5:30 pm local time, a Robinson R-22 (helicopter), registered N90773, was substantially damaged in an accident near Nashville, Tennessee (Nashville Metro Airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 11, 1982 · about 5:30 pm local time
- Place
- Nashville, Tennessee · Nashville Metro Airport
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Robinson R-22 · all R-22s on the register
- Registration
- N90773 · no longer on the register · serial 0278
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING AN AUTOROTATION AT ABOUT 125 FT AGL THE STUDENT ATTEMPTED TO APPLY POWER FOR A RECOVERY BUT NOTED THAT THE OIL PRESSURE LIGHT WAS ILLUMINATED & THE ENG HAD QUIT. THE CFI TOOK THE CONTROLS & EXECUTED AN EMERGENCY LANDING. HE MANEUVERED TO AVOID POWER LINES & MADE A RUNNING LANDING ON ABOUT A 2-DEG SLOPE. THE ACFT CAME TO REST WITH THE BUBBLE THROUGH A FENCE. THE TEMP/DEW POINT WAS 44/39. THE ENG FAILED ABOUT 5 MIN AFTER TAKEOFF.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, flight instructor
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: helicopter; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 3,180 hours in all; 430 in this make and model; 90 in the last 90 days; 2,825 as pilot in command; 320 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 322 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 30 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,300 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Nashville TN at 11:20 am
- Destination: Nashville TN
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 010° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,300 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 109°F (43°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Other NTSB records under N90773 the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.