Acinternationa1 (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

well it was surprising the it moved after it crashed and lit afire right before hitting the water

robbie5380 (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

rear tail roter looses power.. mechanical failiure

windmillcrusader (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

Scratch what i said about forward airspeed. if he had a large helipad or runway where he had "room" to come to a 5 foot hover, he'd be fine. he went from forward airspeed to an out of ground hover, with a heavy load (probably), i imagine it was hot and probably humid.He tried to drop the power so he'd stop spinning but it was too late.

windmillcrusader (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

He ran out of left pedal. that means the atmospheric conditions and the power to stay at an out of ground hover were more than the thrust of the tail rotor could give out.He needed to land on a runway with airspeed or lose weight.

brodes529 (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

i know the person who was the ATC for this flight and they said exhaust vents on the back of the quarterdeck which are supposed to be closed before a helo comes in werent, which meant just as he came in he got a huge blast of air under him. and no one died. if there is a longer vid of this you can see the DC (damage control) by the crew is nothing short of horrible. but thats what happens in real situations.

SeryjAist (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

Looks like the tail rotor suddenly gave out. The pilot managed to stabilize the heli until he ran out of left pedal. It seems he realized his predicament and tried to make it to the platform and throw the rig down. If he'd just dropped the collective completely on first contact, he might have made it, but who knows?

Amnesiacmidnitetoker (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

I hope no one died who cares about the money their lives are wearth more than any damn chopper

59phonebone (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

"That'll buff right out."

hurricane223 (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

wind.

tangerine734 (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

thats gonna be expensive....