Robinson R22 Beta crash near Long Beach, CA, United States

The flight instructor reported that during practice hovering, the student pilot lost aircraft control and the helicopter yawed towards the right. The flight instructor did not act in a timely manner to maintain control of the helicopter and prevent the tail rotor from contacting the ground during the recovery. Subsequently, the helicopter sustained substantial damage to its tail boom. The flight instructor reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation.