Robinson R22 HP accident near Islip, New York, December 22, 1996
On December 22, 1996 at about 2:40 pm local time, a Robinson R22 HP (helicopter), registered N8414H, was substantially damaged in an accident near Islip, New York (Long Island Macarthur 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 students pilot's failure to maintain control of the helicopter and the instructor's inadequate supervision of the flight.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 22, 1996 · about 2:40 pm local time
- Place
- Islip, New York · Long Island Macarthur · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Robinson R22 HP · all R22 HPs on the register
- Registration
- N8414H · no longer on the register · serial 0355
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The flight instructor stated that the student, who had 13 hours of total flight time, completed the runup and the pre-takeoff check, and lifted the helicopter into a hover. As they started to hover-taxi forward, the student suddenly applied left cyclic, and the left skid struck the ground. Before the instructor could overpower the student, the helicopter went into a dynamic rollover, and came to rest on its left side.
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: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: helicopter; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 527 hours in all; 253 in this make and model; 49 in the last 90 days; 34 in the last 30 days; 486 as pilot in command; 44 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,188 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 16, 1996; 63 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,300 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O320-B2C (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ISP at 1:40 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat
- Temperature: 39°F (4°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 N8414H 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.