It reminds me of this crash is Carlsbad. He was also landing in a tailwind (not sure if that is part of the equation or not) but sadly the results were fatal….

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/video/news/v ... ornia.html

Is it possible he got into ground resonance? I watched a Twin Star get into ground resonance once....pilot was able to save it, but it was pretty wild. Went from full control to totally wild in a split second.

MTV

No, that's more of a destructive, oscillating mode. He just pitched and went. Plus once you leave the ground, you leave the source of ground resonance.

I still think it was a tailwind gust, but if left seat controls were installed I could see a passenger pushing the cyclic forward to get out. But that's assuming the pilot didn't have a death grip on his controls, knowing passengers are unpredictable. I always did when I had unrated guys in the left seat.

This is another example how rumor and misinformation is perpetuated by the press. The original press monkey reviewed the video and saw smoke ,but called it fire cause he either wants to sensationalize it or, or he's just plane stupid, and doesn't know the difference. He, or a witness see's the helicopter buffeting around, and he perceives it as "wind" Then he writes it up, and the "copy" is cloned and sent all over the news feeds where it becomes gospel.
It was painful to watch that video knowing someone was in that thing while it spun uncontrollably, If they were any where near conscious at the time, the centrifugal force would have been debilitating.

This is the best information so far that tells a little bit more of the story. Basically the pilot complained to atc that someone had not chocked his rolling landing cart and it was skating away on him. He managed a partial landing ,but it wasn't stable and the aircraft fell backwards off the pad which looks like it set up a PIO that got out of hand, and then tail rotor got whacked, just as he probably pulled collective to get airborne.Then he was done for. The aircraft did not burn and again wind had little to do with it.
The video aftermath and atc recording

http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/P ... 55541.html

The best explanation I've heard so far is from a heli pilot that claimed it was panic. His theory is that the normal "feel" of this ship is nose high, landing heels first. With a heavy load, the ship would be more nose low, wanting to touch on it's toes. He speculates that the pilot, already snorty about the wind, felt the ship rock backwards at touchdown as it settled on it's heels, thought he was rocking off his perch, and corrected for his perceived situation, but overreacted to reality with full power and pitch.

Cam and I will still back into the revetment when the downwind is over 12 or so. Transitional lift is around 12 and the tip path plane (big round wing) doesn't care which way it is flying. Just weird for the pilot when the helicopter is flying backwards while drifting forward. Choices are three point it on the stinger or turn the damn thing around and land into the wind.