National Transportation safety Board preliminary report regarding February 8th helicopter crash in Panacea

NTSB Identification: ERA14FA115
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Saturday, February 08, 2014 in Panacea, FL
Aircraft: ROBINSON HELICOPTER COMPANY R44 II, registration: N571AC
Injuries: 2 Fatal,1 Serious.

This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed. NTSB investigators either traveled in support of this investigation or conducted a significant amount of investigative work without any travel, and used data obtained from various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.
On February 8, 2014, about 1945 eastern standard time, a Robinson R-44 II, N571AC, was substantially damaged when it impacted trees and terrain after takeoff from Wakulla County Airport (2J0), Panacea, Florida. The private pilot and one passenger were fatally injured, and another passenger sustained serious injuries. The helicopter was registered to Capital Helicopters, LLC, and was operated by a private individual. Night visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the flight, which was destined for Tallahassee Regional Airport (TLH), Tallahassee, Florida. The personal flight was conducted under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91.

The helicopter had landed at 2J0 earlier in the day with the pilot and two passengers onboard. After eating at a local restaurant the pilot and passengers were transported back to the airport, where they arrived at approximately 1930 for their return flight to TLH. According to the surviving passenger, the pilot stated they would have to "back up" the helicopter prior to takeoff. The helicopter then departed the airport and, moments later, the passenger called out the pilot's name as they impacted trees.

A witness at the airp ort reported seeing the helicopter parked "facing south" prior to its departure. He did not observe the helicopter take off, but after hearing a loud "snap," he drove to the end of his driveway, where he heard the passenger calling for help.

The wreckage was located in a marsh bordered by trees, about 353 feet northwest of the departure end of runway 36. The tree tops located next to the main wreckage exhibited impact markings approximately 50 feet above ground level. The main wreckage was oriented about 24 degrees magnetic, and came to rest inverted in several feet of water. The main rotor blades both exhibited coning in the negative direction, but remained attached to the main rotor mast with the exception of the trailing edge of one of the blades, which had been impact separated. The tailboom was separated from the fuselage and was co-located with the main wreckage.

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