Hughes 369D N88SE
20 June 2006 · Salt Lake City, Utah, United States · No injuries
Summary
On 20 June 2006 at about 16:30 local time, a Hughes 369D registered N88SE was involved in an accident near Salt Lake City, Utah, 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 16:30
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Salt Lake City, Utah, United States
- Coordinates
- 40.6990, -111.9398
- Aircraft
- Hughes 369D
- Registration
- N88SE
- Category
- Helicopter
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 133: Rotorcraft Ext. Load
- Purpose of flight
- External Load
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Bountiful → Salt Lake City
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- SEA06LA124
People
Nobody was injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Probable cause
A loss of rotor rpm for undetermined reasons, resulting in a hard landing on top of the commercial building over which the helicopter was working.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
While placing an air conditioning unit on top of a commercial building, the pilot heard the main rotor pitch droop, and confirmed that the rotor rpm was beginning to decrease. He then confirmed the throttle was open in the full flight position, moved the load away from the personnel on the roof, and lowered the collective. The low rotor audio sounded, and the rotor rpm continued to decrease, so the pilot hit the load release switch and autorotated to an emergency landing on top of the roof. After a hard touchdown, the aircraft bounced, touched down again, and then balanced on the right skid before very slowly rolling onto its right side. The load he was placing on the roof weighed less than one-half of what the helicopter was capable of lifting under the ambient conditions, and neither an engine/airframe inspection nor a test run of the engine were able to establish any anomalies or the initiating factor in the rotor droop event.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Hughes 369 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 Sep 2006 | Hughes 369D | Somis, California, United States | Southern California Edison Company | Fatal | 2 |
| 19 May 2006 | Hughes 369A | Banks, Oregon, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 21 Nov 2006 | Hughes 369E | Jensen, Utah, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 13 Aug 2006 | Hughes 369D | Lahaina, Hawaii, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 30 Jun 2006 | Hughes 369D | Moab, Utah, United States | Camera Copters, Inc. | No injuries | - |
| 28 May 2006 | Hughes 369HS | Mattituck, New York, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 Jun 2006 | Piper PA-20 | Salt Lake City, Utah, United States | Craig T. Weaver | No injuries | - |
| 2 Jan 2006 | Beechcraft 35-A33 | Heber City, Utah, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 9 Jun 2006 | Lciv LANCAIR IV-P PROPJET | Provo, Utah, United States | - | Fatal | 3 |
| 30 Aug 2006 | Cessna 182RG | Fairfield, Utah, United States | Civil Air Patrol | No injuries | - |
| 16 Oct 2006 | Robinson R22 BETA | Monticello, Utah, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 25 Jul 2006 | Spectrum Aeronautical 33 | Spanish Fork, Utah, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |