Editing Robinson R44 (section)

==Accidents and incidents==
===Fuel tanks===
The R44 was found to be prone to post-accident fires due to damage to the aluminum fuel tanks, allowing fuel to leak out. In 2009, the company began installing bladder-type fuel tanks in all new R44 helicopters. It also issued Service Bulletin SB-78 on 20 December 2010, requiring R44 helicopters with all-aluminum fuel tanks to be retrofitted with bladder-type tanks to "improve the R44's fuel system's resistance to a post-accident fuel leak." The company recommended that the change should be done as soon as practical, but no later than 31 December 2014. The compliance date was later moved to 30 April 2013.<ref name="RobinsonSB-78B">{{cite report|date=28 September 2012|title=R44 Service Bulletin|url=https://robinsonheli.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/r44_sb78.pdf|publisher=[[Robinson Helicopter Company]]|version=Rev B|location=Torrance, CA|docket=SB-78B|access-date=25 April 2013|archive-date=19 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180919123052/https://robinsonheli.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/r44_sb78.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>

An accident investigation by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) in March 2013 found, after analyzing historical data, that a significantly higher proportion of R44 aircraft (12%) caught fire after crashing, compared to accidents involving other types of piston-engine helicopters (7%).<ref name="055Prelim">{{cite report|date=5 April 2013|title=Collision with terrain involving Robinson R44 helicopter, VH-HWQ, Preliminary|url=http://www.atsb.gov.au/media/4110277/ao-2013-055_prelim.pdf|publisher=[[Australian Transport Safety Bureau]]|docket=AO-2013-055|access-date=18 September 2013}}</ref>{{rp|7}} Preliminary analysis by the ATSB of the NTSB's accident database found a similar statistic, with 15% of accidents in the US involving R44 helicopters having post-crash fires.<ref name="055Prelim"/>{{rp|7}}

[[File:Heli Air Robinson R44 Raven II arrives RIAT Fairford 10thJuly2014 arp.jpg|thumb|[[Heli Air]] Robinson R44 Raven II arriving for the 2014 [[Royal International Air Tattoo]], [[England]]]]

Although the data did not consider which type of fuel tanks were fitted, the report mentioned four fatal accidents to the R44 fitted with bladder-type tanks, but as far as they knew, did not involve a post-accident fire. The ATSB recommended that the Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) take further action to urge R44 owners to fit bladder-type tanks.<ref name="055Prelim"/>{{rp|12}} The [[FAA]], the governing body in the country of manufacture whose directives would normally be followed in other countries like Australia, had not mandated the retrofit; CASA therefore issued Australian-specific airworthiness directive AD/R44/23, grounding R44 aircraft on 30 April 2013 that had not yet been upgraded.<ref name="R44-23">{{cite report|last=Ward|first=Nicholas|date=29 April 2013|title=R44 Bladder Fuel Tank Retrofit|url=http://www.casa.gov.au/ADFiles/rotor/r44/r44-023.pdf|publisher=[[Civil Aviation Safety Authority]]|docket=AD/R44/23|access-date=25 September 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130927084048/http://www.casa.gov.au/ADFiles/rotor/r44/r44-023.pdf|archive-date=27 September 2013}}</ref>

===Rotor failures===
On 19 February 2015, the [[New Zealand Civil Aviation Authority]] issued an [[Airworthiness Directive]] grounding 80 of the country's R44 helicopters after two people were killed in an accident traced to a particular type of main rotor blade, the P/N C016-7 or Dash 7, which a preliminary investigation determined had failed in flight. It was the second failure or partial failure in two months. This was the largest-scale grounding of any aircraft in New Zealand's history. The CAA determined through laboratory tests that the rotor blade had failed due to overload during the crash and was not the cause of the accident and the fleet was ungrounded on 24 February 2015. The CAA left the Airworthiness Directive requiring repetitive inspections in place, however. Director of Civil Aviation Graeme Harris stated, "We don't want to see any complacency amongst operators as there is still a concern with these blades and we are waiting on test results from the USA before we review the Airworthiness notice."<ref name="stuff">{{cite news|last1=Kenny|first1=Katie|last2=Mann|first2=Brittany|title=Chopper ban after deaths unprecedented|url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/66485213/chopper-ban-after-deaths-unprecedented|access-date=21 February 2015|work=[[Stuff.co.nz]]|publisher=[[Fairfax New Zealand]]|date=21 February 2015}}</ref> Following the grounding in New Zealand, Australia's [[Civil Aviation Safety Authority]] (CASA) also grounded R44 helicopters with the same rotor blades.<ref name="R44-24">{{cite report|last=Ward|first=Nicholas|date=21 February 2015|title=Prohibition of Flight—C016-7 Main Rotor Blades|url=http://www.casa.gov.au/wcmswr/_assets/main/airworth/airwd/ADfiles/ROTOR/R44/R44-024.pdf|publisher=[[Civil Aviation Safety Authority]]|docket=AD/R44/24|access-date=23 February 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150222162936/http://www.casa.gov.au/wcmswr/_assets/main/airworth/airwd/ADfiles/ROTOR/R44/R44-024.pdf|archive-date=22 February 2015}}</ref><ref name="ground">{{cite news|last1=Niles|first1=Russ|title=Australia, New Zealand Ground Some R-44s|url=https://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news/Australia-New-Zealand-Ground-Some-R-44s-223598-1.html|access-date=23 February 2015|publisher=AVweb|date=21 February 2015}}</ref><ref name="CAA24Feb2015">{{cite press release|last=Richards|first=Mike|date=24 February 2015|title=CAA lifts flight ban on Helicopters|url=http://www.caa.govt.nz/public_and_media_info/caa_releases/med_rel_robinson_r44_2.pdf|publisher=[[Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand]]|access-date=2 June 2015}}</ref>

===Former president of Chile===
{{main|Death and state funeral of Sebastián Piñera}}
On 6 February 2024 an R44 helicopter crashed into [[Ranco Lake]] near [[Lago Ranco, Chile|Lago Ranco]], [[Los Ríos Region]] (English: Rivers Region), [[Chile]]. 3 of the 4 occupants survived, with the fatal victim being the ex-President of Chile [[Sebastián Piñera]] who was also the pilot of the accident helicopter.<ref>{{cite news |author=Natalia A. Ramos Miranda, Anthony Esposito and Fabian Cambero |title=Chile's former president Sebastian Pinera dies in helicopter crash |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/chile-ex-president-sebastianpinera-dies-helicopter-crash-local-media-says-2024-02-06/ |access-date=6 February 2024 |work=[[Reuters]] |publisher=Thomson Reuters |date=February 6, 2024 }}</ref>