Eurocopter AS 350/355/EC130 - Astar/Twinstar/Ecureuil
Flight Crew Instrument; Flight Crew Multiengine; Flight Crew Commercial; Flight Crew Flight Instructor
Flight Crew Last 90 Days 25; Flight Crew Total 8000; Flight Crew Type 952
Human-Machine Interface; Communication Breakdown; Training / Qualification
Conflict NMAC; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy
Flight Crew Took Evasive Action
Equipment / Tooling; Human Factors
I had come to ZZZ to pick up an Astar 350 for my company. It had just been sold to the company and finished maintenance. The maintenance company wanted me to fly the helicopter in the pattern for a power check before releasing it. I had one of mechanics prepare to take off with me from the helicopter ramp just north of the XX numbers on the runway. The helicopter utilizes a Garmin touch screen and it was my first time using a touch screen to enter radio frequencies. I checked the standby that was set to a discrete frequency and the active that was ZZZ CTAF. I commented to the mechanic about the new modern radios and apparently when I touched the screen after setting the frequency it flipped from the standby. I immediately put out a call on the CTAF that I would be taking off abeam Runway XX to the NW. Thinking I was on CTAF but; unknowingly it went out on the wrong frequency.After I transmitted the call out prior to lifting; I said to my passenger; the mechanic; 'Clear Right'; and then asked him 'Clear Left?' We were not perpendicular to the runway because the winds were gusting 34 from about 340 and turning my nose further left would have put me in LTE; so I had to rely on my passenger for the left side. He said; 'There is a plane taking the runway; cross over' I was still at hover altitude; so I crossed and looked to my right and saw an airplane at my two o'clock high at about 300' and climbing. I looked at my radio and saw the frequency of CTAF in the standby; so I immediately switched it to active and called the pilot of the airplane. He was quite angry; understandably so and I told him of the radio mistake. He angrily said; 'That's what gets people killed' and something else. I apologized and he was not happy with that. When I arrived back at my home airport; my boss asked about the incident with the plane and I told her what I described above. She said she received an angry call from the airplane pilot who said he came within 100 feet of me and; wanted my name; etc. She took down his phone number and asked me if I wanted to call him. She said his name was Name and I called him immediately. He was quite angry on the phone and I tried to tell him how the situation evolved; and I apologized for a number of times. He said he would not accept it and that I almost killed him and his family coming within a few feet. I said I know it was close; but not a few feet. Name said he is a CFI; and he was calling the safety officer at the local FSDO with a formal complaint. I said ok and said goodbye. The next morning; I called [the local FSDO early in the morning] to be proactive and informed him of what I described above.
AS350 pilot reported mismanagement of radio resulted in a NMAC with traffic.