McDonnell Douglas H-369 N58268

Summary

On 6 April 1996 at about 22:20 local time, a McDonnell Douglas H-369 registered N58268 was involved in an accident near Delta Junction, Alaska, United States. One person was on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

6 April 1996 at 22:20

Classification

Accident

Location

Delta Junction, Alaska, United States

Coordinates

63.7007, -144.8898

Aircraft

McDonnell Douglas H-369

Registration

N58268

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Positioning

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Big Delta → Field Site

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ANC96LA045

1 person had minor injuries.

loss of engine power for an undetermined reason.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot noted an unscheduled spool down during cruise flight, and initiated an autorotation. After lowering the collective pitch, he noticed that the engine was still producing power. He applied collective pitch and attempted to climb out. However, the engine again spooled down, and another autorotation was made. Subsequently, the helicopter touched down with forward speed and nosed over. The pilot stated the engine was still running after touchdown, and he performed an engine shutdown. During a subsequent engine test run at Allison, the engine started, accelerated, and decelerated normally. Maximum power output was 4.9 percent below normal. No other discrepancies were found.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.