A student pilot who crashed a helicopter into Melbourne homes did not immediately recognise the engine had lost power and missed two areas for a safe landing.
The pilot was on his second solo training flight in a Hughes 269C three-seat light helicopter on November 30 and returning to Moorabbin Airport, an Australian Transport Safety Bureau report found.
About 1pm the pilot was approaching the airport when he noticed it had become unstable and started what is called a go-around.
"As the helicopter climbed to about 650 feet above ground level, the engine lost power," bureau director of transport safety Stuart Macleod said.
"While the pilot identified a reduction in performance at this time, they did not immediately recognise the engine had lost power."
The chopper came down on to two houses at Mentone, near the airport, seriously injuring the pilot and causing substantial damage.
The aircraft became embedded in the roof of one of the homes.
The report notes that while the pilot was troubleshooting the reduction in engine performance, the helicopter passed two suitable sites for a forced landing.
"When the pilot recognised a forced landing was required, they then did not identify a nearby football oval as the closest suitable area, possibly due to it being obscured by the airframe or instrument panel," Mr Macleod said.
"Instead, they identified a school ground, and attempted a landing there, but collided with rooftops short of this intended location as the helicopter had insufficient height."
Mr Macleod said the situation was challenging for an inexperienced pilot, but the student maintained control of the aircraft enough to maximise survivability, despite not reaching a safe landing.
There were no reported actions made that may have led to the power loss and the helicopter had sufficient fuel.
There were no other reported indications of a fault with the engine, but because a detailed examination of the engine and airframe was not performed, there was limited ability to identify the cause of the power loss.
The bureau says the crash highlights the challenges pilots face with a loss of engine power at low level and with few suitable landing areas nearby.
It recommended pilots mitigate the effects of a power loss by forward planning to reduce mental workload under stress.
