Robinson R22 BETA accident near San Antonio, Texas, June 14, 1997
On June 14, 1997, a Robinson R22 BETA (helicopter), registered N4041W, was substantially damaged in an accident near San Antonio, Texas (Stinson Municipal 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 inadequate supervision during the practice autorotation and his failure to maintain rotor RPM.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 14, 1997
- Place
- San Antonio, Texas · Stinson Municipal · 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
- N4041W · registry record · serial 1666
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The flight instructor was instructing the student pilot in straight-in power recovery autorotations to the center sod. The student initiated the maneuver from an altitude of 1,100 feet MSL, and an airspeed of 65 KIAS, with the rotor RPM in the 'green.' During the autorotation, at 40 feet AGL, the student initiated a cyclic flare. 'As the flare continued, the descent rate slowed.' The student 'started to apply forward cyclic to level the helicopter when it started a left yaw.' The flight instructor got on the controls to align the aircraft with the landing direction, and the low rotor RPM warning horn activated. He 'rolled on the throttle and the helicopter yawed quickly to the right.' After he corrected for the yaw the helicopter 'fell approximately 10 to 15 feet straight down.' It 'impacted [the ground] hard to where the skids were spread out and the seats were collapsed down.'
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, private
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 669 hours in all; 512 in this make and model; 180 in the last 90 days; 147 in the last 30 days; 572 as pilot in command; 271 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,151 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, May 20, 1997; 52 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,370 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-B2C (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SAT
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 90°F (32°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.
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.