Amateur-built Rotorway Exec 162F accident near Cameron Park, California, July 21, 2004
On July 21, 2004 at about 10:40 pm local time, a amateur-built Rotorway Exec 162F (helicopter), registered N103RW, was destroyed in an accident near Cameron Park, California (Cameron Airpark airport). It was a flight test under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The owner-builder's improper main rotor blade (MRB) maintenance/installation by under torquing the blade retaining nut.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 21, 2004 · about 10:40 pm local time
- Place
- Cameron Park, California · Cameron Airpark · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built Rotorway Exec 162F
- Registration
- N103RW · registry record · serial 6235
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight test · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
Witnesses said the helicopter was in cruise flight when it pitched up, rolled left to an inverted attitude while portions of the airframe separated, then it descended straight down to ground impact. Wreckage examination found evidence that the main rotor blades (MRB) diverged from their plane of rotation, and mast bumping occurred. Thereafter, the blades impacted the tail boom, which separated from the helicopter. The helicopter became uncontrollable, rolled inverted, and descended into a residence. Portions of both the helicopter and residence were consumed in the post impact fire. The pilot-builder held a repairman certificate for his experimental category helicopter. The pilot had replaced RotorWay's main rotor blades with blades manufactured by another company. During assembly of the helicopter, each MRB was attached to its respective blade yoke with a single retention nut/bolt assembly. The subsequent wreckage examination revealed that the nut that secured one of the MRBs to its retention bolt was missing. The retention bolt was examined, and its threads were not stripped; the bolt was intact. During the MRB installation, the nut had likely been inadequately torqued, and thereafter, it had worked off the bolt during flight. With the bolt loose, the MRB was free to diverge from its normal rotation plane, thus rendering the helicopter uncontrollable.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 7,624 hours in all; 96 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 200 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, November 1, 2002; 100 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,500 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotorway 162F (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: O61 Cameron Park CA at 10:39 pm
- Destination: O61
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 240° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 95°F (35°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 29.90 inHg
- Observation at 10:50 pm from AUN, 17 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.
Other NTSB records under N103RW 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.