Hughes 269C N5395S

Summary

On 1 May 2000 at about 23:45 local time, a Hughes 269C registered N5395S, operated by Western Operations, Inc., was involved in an accident near Rialto, California, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 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

1 May 2000 at 23:45

Classification

Accident

Location

Rialto, California, United States

Nearest airport

Rialto Municipal (L67)

Coordinates

34.0990, -117.3791

Aircraft

Hughes 269C

Registration

N5395S

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Western Operations, Inc.

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX00LA181

2 people had minor injuries.

The student's misjudged altitude and failure to maintain rotor rpm while practicing an autorotation, and, the instructor's delayed remedial corrective action and inadequate supervision of the flight.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The helicopter landed hard and rolled over during a practice autorotation. The CFI was providing dual instruction to his student, a CFI candidate. The student was handling all of the controls, and he intended to perform a 180-degree full touchdown autorotation. During the maneuver, the CFI observed that his student had allowed the airspeed to decrease and the main rotor rpm to become low. The CFI called the low rotor rpm situation to his student's attention. However, the student did not take decisive corrective action by initiating a power recovery in sufficient time to avoid the resultant low rotor rpm flare and hard touchdown. No mechanical malfunctions were noted.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.