Hughes 269A N1040S
24 September 2002 · Council Bluffs, Iowa, United States · No injuries
Summary
On 24 September 2002 at about 20:00 local time, a Hughes 269A registered N1040S was involved in an accident near Council Bluffs, Iowa, United States. 2 people were on board and nobody was 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 20:00
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Council Bluffs, Iowa, United States
- Nearest airport
- Council Bluffs Municipal (CBF)
- Coordinates
- 41.2594, -95.7600
- Aircraft
- Hughes 269A
- Registration
- N1040S
- Category
- Helicopter
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Instructional
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Council Bluffs → Unknown
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- CHI02LA293
People
Nobody was injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Probable cause
The premature fracture of the cyclic/mixture bracket resulting in the inability to conduct a landing flare.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The helicopter landed hard despite cyclic being applied during an instructional flight in which a certified flight instructor (CFI) and a dual student, seeking a CFI certificate, were performing autorotations. Inspection of the wreckage revealed a fractured cyclic/mixture support attachment bracket. A major portion of the fracture surface contained a very dark discoloration. The discoloration was heavier on the forward side of the fracture, and there were portions of the fracture without discoloration on the aft side of the fracture. Prolonged ultrasonic cleaning in an acetone failed to remove significant amount of this discoloration. The discoloration covered more than 85 percent of the fracture surface. Examination of the fracture surface with a scanning electron microscope after cleaning revealed that the discolored areas had a rounded globular appearance, typical of casting porosity. Features typical of overstress separation were noted in areas without discoloration. The broken arm also contained a secondary crack that extended aft from near the forward edge.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Hughes 269 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24 Mar 2002 | Hughes 269C | Bessemer, Alabama, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 27 Mar 2002 | Hughes 269A-1 | Fort Collins, Colorado, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 19 Feb 2002 | Hughes 269C | Lorain, Ohio, United States | Hurst Aviation | No injuries | - |
| 1 Nov 2002 | Hughes 269A | Fort Gibson, Oklahoma, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 16 Aug 2002 | Hughes 269C | Dannevirke, New Zealand | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 10 Aug 2002 | Hughes 269A | Covington, Washington, United States | Charles Douglas | No injuries | - |
All 1,213 records for this type
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 Jul 2002 | Jackovich PITTS S1D | Donahue, Iowa, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 20 Mar 2002 | Schweizer G-164A | Cascade, Iowa, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 21 Jan 2002 | Piper PA-22-160 | Iowa Falls, Iowa, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 24 Sep 2002 | Piper PA-24-260 | Ankeny, Iowa, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 31 Jan 2002 | Piper PA-42-720 | Ames, Iowa, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 5 Feb 2002 | Cessna 172N | Ottumwa, Iowa, United States | - | No injuries | - |