Grand Canyon Tour Helicopter - Hard Landing

[PHXPhlyer]

7 hurt as Grand Canyon tour helicopter makes hard landing

https://www.azfamily.com/2022/12/28/off ... a-airport/

LAS VEGAS, NV (AP) — A Grand Canyon tour helicopter made a hard landing at a Las Vegas-area airport, injuring seven people, officials said Wednesday. Authorities are investigating the cause.

Local responders and the National Transportation Safety Board characterized it as a “hard landing” around 4:30 p.m. Tuesday at Boulder City Municipal Airport, while the Federal Aviation Administration called it a crash while landing.

A photo posted on Facebook showed the red helicopter upright in a flat desert area. There were no reports of a fire.

The pilot and six passengers were taken to hospitals in Las Vegas and suburban Henderson for treatment of injuries that Boulder City spokesperson Lisa LaPlante called not life-threatening.

PP

The FAA said it is investigating, and the NTSB identified the operator of the Airbus Helicopters EC130 T2 as Las Vegas-based Papillon Grand Canyon Helicopter air tours.

Papillon representatives did not immediately respond Wednesday to a telephone message.

FlightAware, an air traffic database, reported that the 25-minute flight originated at the Grand Canyon near Kingman, Arizona, and was headed for the Boulder City airport. Boulder City is a 30-minute drive from downtown Las Vegas.

NTSB spokesperson Peter Knudson said a preliminary report should be available within about three weeks.

[Fox3WheresMyBanana]

Is that a camera/lighting effect, or is that boom cracked?

[PHXPhlyer]

Looks like its broke.
Comparing photos on the Google Machine_TM with this one and putting a straight edge on the top of the boom it looks bent to me.

PP

[CharlieOneSix]

From TOP, an unverified post:

Update on injuries
front pax - broken leg
rear pax - broken sternum, fractured pelvis, fractured spine L1,L2,L3
rear pax - broken sternum , fractured spine c1
rear pax - fractured c3

N835GC second of three ship charter , was hover taxing along Taxiway at about 1.5m above ground, as it approached a small asphalt road to head into apron area it started to yaw to the left 10m prior to the road , suggesting maybe not pilot induced. The first 90deg of yaw was slow then it become quick and the aircraft pitched around. About 3.5 revolutions it hit the ground still rotating.