McDonnell Douglas 369D N5200Y
17 February 1997 · Santee, California, United States · Fatal
Summary
On 17 February 1997 at about 03:44 local time, a McDonnell Douglas 369D registered N5200Y was involved in an accident near Santee, California, United States. 2 people were on board and one died, one was seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.
The record
- Date
- at 03:44
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Santee, California, United States
- Coordinates
- 32.7905, -116.9607
- Aircraft
- McDonnell Douglas 369D
- Registration
- N5200Y
- Category
- Helicopter
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Public Use
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- El Cajon → Unknown
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Night/Dark
- NTSB number
- LAX97GA105
People
1 person died.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Probable cause
Spatial disorientation and temporary visual impairment that led to a loss of aircraft control as result of difficulty to light adaptivity. Contributing was the crew coordination and inadequate night flight recurrency training.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The sheriff's pilot and qualified observer attempted a takeoff from a hover at a remote canyon in night visual meteorological conditions. The crew was using the helicopter's search light within the previous 15 minutes and the pilot's eyes were not dark adapted. The searchlight was turned off by the observer during the takeoff and the pilot became disoriented. The helicopter descended vertically, struck the ground, and bounced over 100 feet rearward. The public-use agency's training program did not provide for night recurrent emergency procedure training, recurrent night physiology training, or crew resource management training for night flight.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other McDonnell Douglas 369 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 Jan 1997 | McDonnell Douglas 369D | Kamuela, Hawaii, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 6 Dec 1997 | McDonnell Douglas 369HS | Saipan, India | Micronesian Aviation Corp | Minor injuries | - |
| 2 Jun 1998 | McDonnell Douglas 369FF | Shoshone, Idaho, United States | Winco | Fatal | 1 |
| 17 Oct 1996 | McDonnell Douglas 369E | Mesa, Arizona, United States | MD Helicopter Systems | Minor injuries | - |
| 13 Nov 1996 | McDonnell Douglas 369D | Hana, Hawaii, United States | Alika Aviation | No injuries | - |
| 10 Aug 1998 | McDonnell Douglas 369D | Oso, Washington, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24 Aug 1997 | Airbus A300 B4-203 | Los Angeles, California, United States | Pan American World Airways, In | No injuries | - |
| 15 Aug 1997 | Bell UH-1H | Tahoe City, California, United States | Usda / Forest Service | Minor injuries | - |
| 11 Oct 1997 | Cessna 152 | Julian, California, United States | Plus One Flyers, Inc. | Fatal | 1 |
| 11 Oct 1997 | Schweizer 2-32 | Warner Springs, California, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 12 Oct 1997 | Bellanca 7ECA | Tracy, California, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 26 Oct 1997 | Extra Flugzeugbau EA-300 | Castaic, California, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |