Accident/Incident Investigation, Ground Safety, Helicopter Safety, In-depth Feature

Uncommanded Rotation

An AS350 pilot was surprised by the helicopter’s sudden rotation, which killed an apprentice AME during a maintenance ground run, the TSB says.

by Linda Werfelman | June 3, 2026

A pilot and two maintenance staff members were conducting a ground run on a Mustang Helicopters Airbus AS350 B3 when the helicopter entered an uncommanded rotation, prompting the pilot to move the engine control to IDLE, shut off the fuel, and apply the rotor brake. The helicopter rotated about 540 degrees and stopped, with its tail rotor striking an aircraft maintenance engineer (AME) and an apprentice.

Uncommanded Rotation

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