Hughes 369D N725M

Summary

On 15 May 2013 at about 19:00 local time, a Hughes 369D registered N725M, operated by Aerial Solutions, Inc, was involved in an accident near Camdenton, Missouri, 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.

Date

15 May 2013 at 19:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Camdenton, Missouri, United States

Coordinates

38.0009, -92.7408

Aircraft

Hughes 369D

Registration

N725M

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Aerial Solutions, Inc

Operating rule

Part 133: Rotorcraft Ext. Load

Purpose of flight

External Load

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Camdenton → Camdenton

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN13CA281

Nobody was injured.

The piece of wood/tree that contacted the main rotor blade during the low altitude tree-trimming flight.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The purpose of the helicopter flight was to trim trees using an external load aerial power saw. The pilot stated that as he was trimming the trees, he saw a 6 to 8 inch piece of wood/tree flying upward on the left side of the helicopter. He stated he felt a momentary vibration as the wood contacted one of the main rotor blades, then everything returned to “normal.” The pilot made a precautionary landing in a nearby field without further incident. The damage to the main rotor blade was substantial and required replacement of the blade.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.