NTSB Identification: DFW08LA140 14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Saturday, May 10, 2008 in Austin, TX Probable
Cause Approval Date: 12/08/2008 Aircraft: ROBINSON HELICOPTER
COMPANY R22 MARINE, registration: N8316D Injuries: 2 Uninjured.
The pilot and pilot rated passenger were operating a single-
engine helicopter equipped with pontoons over a lake for the
purpose of photographing recreational boats. Several witnesses
observed the helicopter flying erratic and at a low altitude
over the boats before it impacted the water and rolled inverted.
The pilot stated that they were tracking a boat approximately
100 feet above the ground level. The boat was traveling to the
south and they were flying to the north with a tail wind. He
said that he executed a right hand turn and noticed that the
rotor RPM had begun to decrease, the rotor RPM horn came on, and
the governor light began to flash. The pilot immediately began
to execute a low rotor RPM recovery by lowering the collective,
increasing engine