NTSB Identification: WPR11LA045
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Friday, November 12, 2010 in Pacoima, CA
Aircraft: EUROCOPTER AS350B2, registration: N1231A
Injuries: 2 Uninjured.

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 may have traveled in support of this investigation and used data provided by various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.
On November 12, 2010, at 0748 Pacific standard time, a Eurocopter AS350B2, N1231A, had the tail boom separate during a forced autorotation landing at Whiteman Field, Pacoima, California. Tiny Bubbles Aviation, Inc., was operating the helicopter under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91. The commercial pilot and one passenger were not injured. The helicopter sustained substantial damage to the airframe. The local electronic news gathering (ENG) flight was departing for a local flight at the time. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed.

The pilot informed a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector that he was about 800 feet above ground level (agl) on the downwind departure from the airport. The engine began to lose power, and he made an immediate autorotation to runway 30. The tail rotor struck the ground, and the tail boom separated in front of the horizontal stabilizers.

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