Flight Crew Commercial; Flight Crew Instrument; Flight Crew Flight Instructor
Flight Crew Last 90 Days 16; Flight Crew Total 610; Flight Crew Type 570
Training / Qualification
Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Ground Event / Encounter Ground Strike - Aircraft; Inflight Event / Encounter Loss Of Aircraft Control
Flight Crew Regained Aircraft Control; General Flight Cancelled / Delayed
Environment - Non Weather Related; Procedure
Training on infield of airport. As student raised collective and applied forward cyclic he also rolled the throttle off. The aircraft had barely made approximately 30 FT AGL and Instructor was unable to recover throttle; but was able to right aircraft from the turn and maintain a level touchdown preventing a rollover. The landing skids were spread on the aircraft as designed to cushion the landing. Instructor was in contact with ATC and advised that other than landing gear all was OK. Instructor checked over aircraft; flight checked at hover and requested permission to return to hangar. Student pilot was [elderly] and this was the first flight with this Instructor. Student had repeatedly rolled the throttle off in the previous hour during hovering maneuvers. Additionally; student was wearing a rubberized glove on his left hand that he indicated he needed to help his grip. Reporter believes this may have been a factor in ability [of the Instructor] to override. The Instructor had taken into consideration the student's 2000+ hours of flight time and [many] hours of recent rotorcraft instruction to give the student benefit that he knew his limitations; which he seemed to indicate if he needed assistance. Instructions had to be repeated numerous times. Age and ability seemed to be factors; but actual flight ability seemed to be within the limits of flight with an Instructor.
R22 student pilot inadvertently closed the throttle when raising the collective for takeoff. Instructor pilot took control and leveled the aircraft; but was unable to restore throttle. A hard landing resulted.