Robinson R-44 accident near West Monroe, Louisiana, May 10, 2006
On May 10, 2006 at about 9:00 pm local time, a Robinson R-44 (helicopter), registered N144DJ, was destroyed in an accident near West Monroe, Louisiana. It was an executive or corporate flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's loss of control while taxiing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 10, 2006 · about 9:00 pm local time
- Place
- West Monroe, Louisiana · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Robinson R-44 · all R-44s on the register
- Registration
- N144DJ · registry record · serial 1183
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Executive or corporate flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The 17,000-hour helicopter commercial pilot, sole occupant of the single-engine helicopter, was attempting to land on a landing cart. The pilot stated that the landing cart is normally used to facilitate moving the helicopter in and out of the hangar. On the day of the accident, the small tractor that is normally connected to the cart was not attached and that the cart wheels were not secured. Upon a normal landing on the stationary cart, the cart began to move towards a hangar. The pilot was unable to re-establish rotor RPM in time to stop the movement of the cart, and the main rotor blades impacted the hangar. The pilot reported having accumulated a total of 700 hours in the same make and model. The hangar was substantially damaged.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: instructor: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 17,000 hours in all; 700 in this make and model; 125 in the last 90 days; 15 in the last 30 days; 16,970 as pilot in command; 14,729 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 978 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 1, 2006
- Maximum gross weight: 2,400 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-540-F1B5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: KARA New Iberia LA at 7:45 pm
- Destination: West Monroe LA
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 260° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 3,000 ft
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 73°F (23°C)
- Altimeter: 29.64 inHg
- Observation at 3:53 pm from KMLU
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
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 N144DJ the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number DFW06CA124.