This library section includes selected lessons learned from rotorcraft accidents that have been judged to contain significant aviation safety learning opportunities. In the United States, these aircraft types are regulated under airworthiness standards FAR Part 27 and FAR Part 29 for normal and transport category rotorcraft.

Currently, rotorcraft presence in the U.S. equates to approximately 13% of all general aviation activity and encompasses a fleet size of approximately 10,000 helicopters. The Gulf of Mexico offshore helicopter industry alone carries approximately 2.2 million passengers annually, flying more than 250,000 flight hours on 500,000 flights. When combined with other uses, such as first responders, tourism, and various business operations, the contribution of helicopters to aviation has steadily increased within the past decade.

As with other aircraft types, lessons from accidents continue to play an important role in the process of improving aviation safety. This rotorcraft accident library, currently under early development, represents some of the significant accidents, associated critical safety initiatives, and their related lessons learned.

View Rotorcraft Accident Library

Release 3, 7/5/2023
Total number of rotorcraft modules: 10

Accident Statistics

Priority Occurrence Category by CAST/ICAO Common Taxonomy Team (CICTT) 2009-2013

Priority Occurrence Category by CAST/ICAO Common Taxonomy Team (CICTT) 2009-2018

Priority Occurrence Category by CAST/ICAO Common Taxonomy Team (CICTT) 2014-2018

Fatal Accidents by Industry 2014-2018

Arrangement of the library

Three different "perspectives" are used to arrange the accidents in this library and illustrate the complex interrelationship of accident causes. Each accident also contains at least one high level lesson related to a threat element, and at least one lesson related to a theme element. View each of these perspectives and their related elements by exploring the areas below.

Rotorcraft Perspectives