NBC Media Helicopter Down Los Angeles

The majority of my limited experience in rotor was outside H/V envelope. It’s where I made the money. For some jobs it’s required. I don’t have balls big enough to take that risk over a densely populated urban environment to take pictures and video.
 
I recognize that is a figure of speech, but the risk in partaking, and therefore courage required to hover single engine in the deadman, is the same regardless of the purpose. It is therefore the purpose what turns it into an economic question in my eyes.

Does this job pay a significant premium that makes people compete for it/agree to the nonsense? If not, is there psychic wage associated with being a designated professional lookie-loo in a top 5 metro? Lots of main character syndrome types in media, which is all just entertainment writ large these days.

If the answer to both questions is No, then I fail to see the draw here. It becomes more of a complacency issue then; it's not like the guy was new to rotors and the H/V diagram.
 
The news will portray the H/V curve as though if you enter it, you will immediatly be killed. That is not the case. You DO have to be ready for anything that comes your way when in it though.

There are two typical areas in the H/V chart for any particular helicopter, I have trained autorotations from both sides of that chart. Stuff can go bad very quickly and complacency had no place in these areas.
 
Pretty sure he was above the HV curve though. Goes to show you how difficult it is to get into an acceptable auto-rotational config even when in acceptable chart limits.

I think it’s also worth noting, we don’t know with any certainty that this was a true auto. While obviously an engine over speed occurred, no idea if there was a subsequent engine failure or pilot’s throttle actions associated with that overspeed. You can hear low rotor audio but I don’t even think the Astar has engine out audio. I’m also curious to the noise a couple of seconds prior to the overspeed as well. Perhaps something mechanical (freewheeling unit) that drug the rotor down?
 
I've never flown an Astar. Perhaps a short shaft failure? That would explain the overspeed and the subsequent Nr reduction. I've done them in the sim out at the Helicopter Institute and it takes a moment to figure out what in the heck is going on.

Pure speculation.
 
k9medic said:
I've never flown an Astar. Perhaps a short shaft failure? That would explain the overspeed and the subsequent Nr reduction. I've done them in the sim out at the Helicopter Institute and it takes a moment to figure out what in the heck is going on.

Pure speculation.
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I thought that initially but the high rotor audio (beep beep) went off. If a shaft failed, then obviously it wouldn’t push the rotor high.

I wondering if he reacted to the correct EP. Reading their EPs, it’s seems that a governor failure to the high side will produce a red GOV light. Their overspeed system (EOS)will then stop the engine at 109 % N2. From there it actually describes the pilot controlling fuel flow manually and performing a power on landing. The low side side failure and EOS failure (80 % Nr) call for autos, but a simple overspeed should just be manual throttle.
 
Velocity173 said:
Perhaps something mechanical (freewheeling unit) that drug the rotor down?
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FWIW, 30+ years ago a Los Angeles Police Department AS350-B1 helicopter went down, killing the two officers onboard. According to an internal report by LAPD, the cause of the accident was a defective freewheeling unit.
 
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