Amateur-built Mini 500 accident near Phoenix, Arizona, June 14, 2003
On June 14, 2003 at about 3:20 am local time, a amateur-built Mini 500 (helicopter), registered N919WK, was destroyed in an accident near Phoenix, Arizona (Phoenix Deer Valley Airport). It was a personal 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 failure to maintain directional control of the helicopter.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 14, 2003 · about 3:20 am local time
- Place
- Phoenix, Arizona · Phoenix Deer Valley Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built Mini 500
- Registration
- N919WK · no longer on the register · serial 413
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The helicopter experienced a loss of directional control while hovering, collided with the ground, and rolled over. The pilot was performing a hover taxi test flight after adjusting the carburetor. The pilot said in a written report that shortly into the flight, the helicopter "started to spin to the right and would not respond to the left pedal." It then impacted the ground, rolled on its right side, and was consumed by fire. In the section of NTSB Form 6120.1/2, which asks if there was a mechanical malfunction or failure, the pilot wrote "tail rotor drive shaft failure." When contacted by a Safety Board investigator for clarification of the tail rotor issue, the pilot declined to answer any questions pertaining to the accident.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 700 hours in all
- Last flight review: July 31, 2001
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: sngl
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 50 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, June 7, 2003; 45 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 840 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Bombardier Mini 500A (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: KDVT Deer Valley AZ at 3:20 am
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: night
- Wind: from 230° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 91°F (33°C), dew point 39°F (4°C)
- Altimeter: 29.78 inHg
- Observation at 2:53 am from KDVT, 1 miles away
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.
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.