Serious Incident to the Aerospatiale AS350-B2 registered C-FCHP on 03/22/2016 at Quebec Jean Lesage [Investigation led by TSB / Canada]
Vibrations importantes au cours d'un exercice d'autorotation, en instruction
Responsible entity
Preliminary data based on notification from Canadian authorities:
The helicopter, with two crew members on board, was making a training flight under visual flight rules from Québec/Jean Lesage airport. During a practice autorotation start at an altitude of 1,000 feet above ground level and at a speed of 100 knots, the aircraft began to vibrate in an uncontrollable manner. The pilot was not able to control the vibration with the collective pitch or by modifying the speed, and he declared an emergency. The aircraft made a sliding landing, which ended up on the grass away from the manoeuvring area.