Robinson R22A accident near Santa Rosa, California, October 31, 1993
On October 31, 1993 at about 2:31 am local time, a Robinson R22A (helicopter), registered N8452Z, was substantially damaged in an accident near Santa Rosa, California. It was a personal 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 separation of the tail rotor due to a collision with a mylar balloon and the subsequent hard landing during an autorotation. A factor in the accident was the dark night lighting conditions which limited the pilot's ability to see and avoid the balloon.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 31, 1993 · about 2:31 am local time
- Place
- Santa Rosa, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Robinson R22A · all R22As on the register
- Registration
- N8452Z · no longer on the register · serial 0375
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
According to statements from the pilot, his passenger, and ground witnesses, the pilot was providing helicopter rides to fellow employees at a company halloween party. While overflying the party location, a large mylar party balloon broke free and drifted up in the path of the helicopter. The tail rotor blades struck the balloon and then separated from the helicopter. The pilot initiated an autorotation to a parking lot and touched down hard. Responding sheriff's department officers found fragments of a mylar balloon about 100 feet southeast of the helicopter.
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: rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 161 hours in all; 135 in this make and model; 40 in the last 90 days; 12 in the last 30 days; 92 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,174 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, September 18, 1993; 70 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: STS at 2:00 am
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 140° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 4 statute miles
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:31 am from STS, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.