Robinson R22 Beta accident near Prescott, Arizona, March 24, 2005
On March 24, 2005 at about 7:07 pm local time, a Robinson R22 Beta (helicopter), registered N225G, was substantially damaged in an accident near Prescott, Arizona (Ernest A. Love Field). 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 company mechanic's improper maintenance actions, which resulted in the total failure of the main rotor drive belt system on approach to landing. A factor was the soft terrain.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 24, 2005 · about 7:07 pm local time
- Place
- Prescott, Arizona · Ernest A. Love Field · 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
- N225G · no longer on the register · serial 3563
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The helicopter's main rotor drive belts broke on the base leg and the helicopter rolled over during the subsequent autorotation and landing. The instructor said that he monitored his student during the preflight inspection of the helicopter. No evidence of any problem was detected. The instructor reported that there were no outstanding airworthiness issues with the helicopter. The accident occurred while he was preparing his student for the private pilot certification check ride. The lesson plan/maneuver that he intended the student to practice was a run-on landing. On base leg to runway 21R, while cruising about 60 knots at 300 feet above ground level, the helicopter's nose suddenly yawed left and then right. Concurrently the helicopter shook, and the clutch light illuminated. The instructor took the controls from his student and entered an autorotative descent. About 20 feet above ground level he commenced a cyclic flare for the landing. The underlying terrain was soft sand, and the helicopter rolled over during touchdown. Upon exiting the helicopter, the instructor observed that the V-belts were shredded. A company mechanic had performed a 100-hour inspection about 4.3 hours prior to the accident flight. During the inspection, he had loosened the self-locking nut on the belt actuator housing assembly and had rotated the down-limit stop screw upward until the screw bottomed out in the actuator housing in the full up position. The mechanic forgot to reposition the stop screw and tighten the nut. This action resulted in the main rotor drive V-belts becoming excessively loose. The belts exited their seated position on the lower pulley sheave and were severed.
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
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: helicopter; instructor: instrument helicopter; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 615 hours in all; 470 in this make and model; 136 in the last 90 days; 55 in the last 30 days; 480 as pilot in command; 217 on instruments
- Last flight review: March 1, 2004
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Dual student
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 57 hours in all; 57 in this make and model; 33 in the last 90 days; 10 in the last 30 days; 8 as pilot in command; 0 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,060 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, March 1, 2005; 4 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,370 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-J2A (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Guidance Helicopter, Inc.
The flight
- Departed from: PRC Prescott AZ at 7:00 pm
- Destination: PRC Prescott AZ
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 21R, 4,846 ft by 60 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 240° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 4,100 ft
- Temperature: 45°F (7°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 29.96 inHg
- Observation at 6:53 pm from PRC, 1 miles away
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 N225G 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.