Robinson R22 Beta accident near Pueblo, Colorado, December 21, 2007
On December 21, 2007 at about 6:00 pm local time, a Robinson R22 Beta (helicopter), registered N844SH, was substantially damaged in an accident near Pueblo, Colorado (Pueblo Memorial 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 pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control resulting in a hard landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 21, 2007 · about 6:00 pm local time
- Place
- Pueblo, Colorado · Pueblo Memorial Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Robinson R22 Beta · all R22 Betas on the register
- Registration
- N844SH · no longer on the register · serial 3824
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
According to the flight instructor, the commercial student was performing a hover autorotation from a skid height of one foot. The instructor wrote that yaw was minimal and the helicopter drifted slightly to the left. The helicopter touched down left skid first, then briefly hopped to the left. The student then taxied the helicopter to parking. A postflight examination of the helicopter revealed substantial damage. The instructor reported no anomalies with any of the helicopter systems.
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
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: helicopter; instructor: instrument helicopter; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 1,177 hours in all; 403 in this make and model; 348 in the last 90 days; 91 in the last 30 days
- Last flight review: December 1, 2007
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 124 hours in all; 32 in this make and model; 45 in the last 90 days; 17 in the last 30 days
- Last flight review: October 1, 2007
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,648 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, December 1, 2007
- Maximum gross weight: 1,370 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-J2A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: K1V6 Walsenburg CO at 5:00 pm
- Destination: KPUB Pueblo CO
- Flight plan: none
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 290° at 12 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 52°F (11°C), dew point 19°F (-7°C)
- Altimeter: 29.62 inHg
- Observation at 5:53 pm from KPUB, 1 miles away
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 N844SH 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.