CHARLOTTE — “Inadequate inspections” of hardware conducted by maintenance workers likely caused WBTV’s news helicopter to crash on Nov. 22, 2022, according to the final report released by the National Transportation Safety Board on Thursday.
The crash happened along Interstate 77 at Nations Ford Road in south Charlotte, which resulted in the death of the pilot and meteorologist.
The Robinson R44 was in flight to train meteorologist Jason Myers and pilot Chip Tayag.
They were in the air for about five minutes when the helicopter started spinning until the pilot lost control.
Tayag said “Three’s going down Sky Three’s going down” as it entered a deep descent until it slammed into a grassy area next to I-77, the NTSB stated.
Myers and Tayag died at the scene.
“The forward left control rod end that should have been connected to the stationary swashplate on the main rotor was disconnected and the connecting hardware was missing,” according to NTSB’s report.
Other hardware was probably not secure before the flight and may have been loose for several flights before the accident, according to the federal agency.
Additional hardware was installed backward, which probably happened three years prior during a field overhaul of the Robinson helicopter, the NTSB stated.
The most recent maintenance on the chopper was on Oct. 21, 2022.
The pilot was required to inspect the hardware before every flight, according to the NTSB. The hardware should have also been checked during a 100-hour inspection on Oct. 16, 2022.
Further examination of maintenance records revealed that Robinson Helicopter Company Service Letter 50 had not been complied with, NTSB officials stated.
The service letter instructed operators to replace certain nuts with another type of nut due to corrosion and cracking issues.
Those nuts should have been replaced during the field overhaul in August 2019.
There were both types of nuts found throughout the flight controls on the wrecked
helicopter.
Click here for NTSB’s final report.
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