Helicopteres Guimbal CABRI G2 accident near Claremore, Oklahoma, November 8, 2023
On November 8, 2023 at about 6:45 pm local time, a 2022 Helicopteres Guimbal CABRI G2, registered N522TF, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing near Claremore, Oklahoma (Avian Country Estates 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 flight instructor’s failure to maintain sufficient rotor speed during a practice autorotation which resulted in a hard landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 8, 2023 · about 6:45 pm local time · cases in 2023
- Place
- Claremore, Oklahoma · Avian Country Estates Airport · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Helicopteres Guimbal CABRI G2, built 2022 · all CABRI G2s on the register
- Registration
- N522TF · registry record · serial 1314
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The student pilot and flight instructor initiated a 90° practice autorotation. As the helicopter descended, the flight instructor took control of the helicopter to cushion the landing after the student pilot flared too high. During the attempted recovery, sufficient rotor speed was not maintained, and the helicopter experienced a hard landing. The helicopter sustained substantial damage to the tailboom. Both the student pilot and the flight instructor reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operations.
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
What happened, in order
- Hard landing during landing defining event
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Use of equip/system › Instructor/check pilot
- Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Delayed action › Instructor/check pilot
- Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Landing flare › Not attained/maintained
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot, private
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: helicopter; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 1,200 hours in all; 350 in this make and model; 182 in the last 90 days; 68 in the last 30 days; 600 as pilot in command; 375 on instruments
- Last flight review: June 14, 2023
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Dual student
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land; single-engine sea
- Flight time: 161 hours in all; 39 in this make and model; 46 in the last 90 days; 8 in the last 30 days
- Last flight review: November 30, 2023
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 346 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 11, 2023
- Maximum gross weight: 1,500 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-J2A (piston); 346 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: O38 Owasso OK at 6:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 17, 2,600 ft by 100 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 220° at 16 knots
- Temperature: 32°F (0°C), dew point 32°F (0°C)
- Observation at 12:35 pm
Weather report (METAR): GCM 081835Z AUTO 22016KTS 10SM CLR 29/15 A2970
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 2 |
Photographs from the investigation 3 pictures from the NTSB's docket, as the NTSB released them
Photograph 1 – Helicopter Sitting Upright on Grass a After Accident
Photograph 2 – Substantial Damage to The Top of Tailboom
Photograph 3 – Closeup of Substantial Damage to Top of TailboomThe NTSB's photographs with the NTSB's captions, at screen size. Open a picture to see it full size or to report one that should not be shown.
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
3 documents, released by the NTSB on April 19, 2024. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.
| # | Document | What it is | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | NTSB Form 6120 Pilot Operator Report Student Pilot CEN24LA070 | PDF, 9 pages | View Download |
| 2 | NTSB Form 6120 Pilot Operator Report Flight Instructor CEN24LA070 | PDF, 9 pages | View Download |
| 3 | Investigation Photographs 1 CEN24LA070 | PDF, 4 pages · our copy | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N522TF on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Helicopteres Guimbal CABRI G2 69 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Helicopteres Guimbal 69 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-J2A 254 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Avian Country Estates Airport · nearest airport
- Gundys Airport · departed from
- Accidents and incidents in Oklahoma 1,300 since 1982 · 181 in the last ten years
- Oklahoma 5,658 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/CEN24LA070.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.