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A bell 222 pilot reported losing part of his engine cowl; most likely from a bird strike.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 828307 |
| Time | |
| Date | 200903 |
| Local Time Of Day | 1201-1800 |
| Place | |
| Locale Reference | ZZZ.Airport |
| State Reference | US |
| Environment | |
| Flight Conditions | VMC |
| Light | Daylight |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | Bell Helicopter 222 |
| Operating Under FAR Part | Part 91 |
| Flight Phase | Cruise |
| Flight Plan | None |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | Pilot Flying Single Pilot |
| Qualification | Flight Crew Commercial Flight Crew Instrument Flight Crew Multiengine |
| Experience | Flight Crew Last 90 Days 50 Flight Crew Total 6780 Flight Crew Type 170 |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | Inflight Event / Encounter Bird / Animal |
Narrative:
I departed in VMC; VFR in a bell helicopter. After about 30 minutes of flight; I felt a bump and heard a bang sound. The helicopter continued to operate normally. There was no sign of damage or fire. I decided to return directly to the airport. I landed normally with the gear down. After shutdown and postflight walkaround; I noticed that the left engine cowling was partially missing. Upon further inspection; the mechanic on duty found small dents in the 2 tail rotor blades. Prior to departure; the helicopter had been inspected in accordance with the bell helicopter operating handbook by the mechanic on duty and me as the pilot in command. I believe the helicopter may have been hit by a bird on the left engine cowling; causing the lower 1/3 of the cowling to break and depart the helicopter. Again; no damage was visible from the cockpit during flight. The lower 1/3 of the left engine cowling broke into 3 small pieces and fell to the ground. The cowling latches were found to be closed. A method of prevention of recurrence is unknown.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: A Bell 222 pilot reported losing part of his engine cowl; most likely from a bird strike.
Narrative: I departed in VMC; VFR in a Bell helicopter. After about 30 minutes of flight; I felt a bump and heard a bang sound. The helicopter continued to operate normally. There was no sign of damage or fire. I decided to return directly to the airport. I landed normally with the gear down. After shutdown and postflight walkaround; I noticed that the left engine cowling was partially missing. Upon further inspection; the Mechanic on duty found small dents in the 2 tail rotor blades. Prior to departure; the helicopter had been inspected in accordance with the Bell Helicopter Operating Handbook by the Mechanic on duty and me as the Pilot in Command. I believe the helicopter may have been hit by a bird on the left engine cowling; causing the lower 1/3 of the cowling to break and depart the helicopter. Again; no damage was visible from the cockpit during flight. The lower 1/3 of the left engine cowling broke into 3 small pieces and fell to the ground. The cowling latches were found to be closed. A method of prevention of recurrence is unknown.
Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.