Hiller UH 12-E N141HA
22 September 2005 · Five Points, California, United States · No injuries
Summary
On 22 September 2005 at about 05:00 local time, a Hiller UH 12-E registered N141HA, operated by Huron AG Helicopter Inc., was involved in an accident near Five Points, California, United States. One person was 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 05:00
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Five Points, California, United States
- Coordinates
- 36.3636, -119.9419
- Aircraft
- Hiller UH 12-E
- Registration
- N141HA
- Category
- Helicopter
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Huron AG Helicopter Inc.
- Operating rule
- Part 137: Agricultural
- Purpose of flight
- Aerial Application
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Five Points → Five Points
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Night/Bright
- NTSB number
- LAX05CA313
People
Nobody was injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to refuel the helicopter, which resulted in fuel exhaustion.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
All engine power was lost while the pilot was maneuvering at a low altitude during an aerial application flight. The pilot made a hard forced landing in an open field and bounced. Thereafter, the main rotor blades severed the tail boom. The accident occurred during the third aerial application flight. For the first flight he had refueled with 25 gallons of fuel, and the helicopter was carrying a full load of insecticide. On the second flight he took on only insecticide. On the third (accident flight), he again only took on insecticide. The pilot reported that his normal procedure is to refuel on the second flight, which he did not do. He reported that with 25 gallons of fuel on board he could fly about 20 minutes with a 10-minute reserve. The pilot acknowledged that he should have refueled after the second application, but failed to do so and experienced fuel exhaustion. No mechanical anomalies were reported with the helicopter.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Hiller UH-12 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 27 May 1996 | Hiller UH-12 | Walla Walla, Washington, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 16 Apr 1994 | Hiller UH-12 | Alvin, Texas, United States | Central Helicopter Services | Minor injuries | - |
| 9 Aug 1990 | Hiller UH-12-E | Los Banos, California, United States | Patterson Flying Service | Minor injuries | - |
| 4 Aug 1990 | Hiller UH-12-E | Garrison, North Dakota, United States | Morten, Shawn B. | No injuries | - |
| 17 Feb 1988 | Hiller UH-12-D | Bon-Wier, Texas, United States | Thomas E. Hanks | Serious injuries | - |
| 26 Jun 1984 | Hiller UH 12 D | Deerfield, Wisconsin, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28 May 2005 | Robinson R44 | Lucerne Valley, California, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 28 May 2005 | S A Centrair PEGASE 101D | Williams, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 30 May 2005 | Cessna 172N | Stockton, California, United States | Luis Rivara | No injuries | - |
| 27 Dec 2005 | Socata TBM 700 | Lancaster, California, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 28 Dec 2005 | Learjet 35A | Truckee, California, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 8 Sep 2005 | Robinson R22 | Santa Clarita, California, United States | Orbic Helicopters | No injuries | - |