"Stuart & Kathryn Fields" wrote in message
.. .
A recent incident involving a Rotorway helicopter occurred. An accidental
bumping of the clutch switch dis-engaged the clutch. The resulting
autorotation resulted in a roll over and of course some significant damage.
As I understand it, the switch was mounted in the overhead panel but the
pilot's headset could make contact and inadvertently cause the clutch
dis-engagement. I wonder if the standard switch cover that you have to
lift to get access to the switch itself would have stopped this occurrence?

--
Stuart & Kathryn Fields, Publishers

Sounds like a reasonable assumption to me. It also sounds like having a
protected switch should be a recommended safety item for any critical
function, whether or not the switch is in a position to be accidentally
bumped.

Going slightly off topic, and I'm not meaning to put anyone down here, but
why is it that just about every emergency autorotation I hear about results
in significant damage to the helicopter? Most folks walk away from them,
which is good, but some don't. This seems to be fairly common even among
aircraft that have the reputation of being relatively forgiving in this
mode. Are autorotations "that" critical or are the successful ones simply
not considered to be worthy of news so I'm not hearing/reading about them?

Fly Safe,
Steve R.