Report cites crew errors in Black Hawk crash

[unhappycamper]

Report cites crew errors in Black Hawk crash
The Associated Press
Posted : Tuesday Dec 15, 2009 14:33:22 EST

COLLEGE STATION, Texas — An investigative board has found that the crew of an Army Blackhawk helicopter that crashed at Texas A&M University in January failed to follow correct emergency procedures.

Two crew members died and three were injured in the Jan. 12 crash during a training exercise.

A Texas Air National Guard investigative report issued in July was obtained by KBTX-TV under an open records request.

The report says the aircraft went into a spin after a control pedal became obstructed by a boot, but that did not cause the crash. The review found that the stuck control pedal caused a tail-rotor malfunction, and “the crew did not fully realize the situation the aircraft was in and did not execute the proper emergency procedure.”

The pilot lowered the overall rotor pitch, as taught for responding to a clockwise spin. However, the helicopter was in a counterclockwise spin, and the measure made the spin faster and caused the aircraft to plummet into the ground.


Rest of article at: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/12/ap_army_blackhawkreport_121509/