Hughes 369D N8348F
26 May 1982 · Fairbury, Illinois, United States · No injuries
Summary
On 26 May 1982 at about 20:00 local time, a Hughes 369D registered N8348F, operated by Norman P. Rittenhouse, was involved in an accident near Fairbury, Illinois, United States. 3 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. No probable cause statement is available for this record.
The record
- Date
- at 20:00
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Fairbury, Illinois, United States
- Coordinates
- 40.7396, -88.5091
- Aircraft
- Hughes 369D
- Registration
- N8348F
- Category
- Helicopter
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Norman P. Rittenhouse
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Fairbury → Fairbury
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- CHI82DA185
People
Nobody was injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
Probable cause
The NTSB has not published a probable cause for this record. No probable cause statement is present in the source data.
Nothing about the cause is stated here that is not in the source record.
Read the full NTSB narrative
DURING FLIGHT, THE N2 AND NR SUDDENLY ACCELERATED TO 110 PERCENT. THE PILOT EVENTUALLY SHUT DOWN THE ENGINE AND MADE AN AUTOROTATION. AN OPEN FIELD WAS SELECTED FOR A LANDING SITE; HOWEVER, IT WAS MUDDY WITH STANDING WATER. THE PILOT DECIDED ON A FULL STOP LANDING RATHER THAN A SLIDE-ON LANDING TO AVOID A NOSE OVER. DURING TOUCHDOWN, THE MAIN ROTOR BLADES FLEXED DOWNWARD AND SEVERED THE TAIL BOOM. AN INVESTIGATION REVEALED THERE WAS SAND AND ALUMINUM HYDROXIDE CORROSION IN THE TURBINE GOVERNOR, PN 2524706-3. ALSO, SOME CORROSION AND FOREIGN MATERIAL WAS FOUND IN THE FUEL CONTROLUNIT, PN 2524644-1. BOTH UNITS HAD 2.5 HRS OF OPERATION SINCE THEY WERE INSTALLED ON THIS AIRCRAFT. AN INSPECTION OF THEGOVERNOR SHOWED THAT THE PG CHANNEL IN THE DRIVE BODY WAS COMPLETELY BLOCKED. THIS BLOCKAGE WOULD HAVE RESULTED IN AN ENGINE OVERSPEED OF UP TO 112 PERCENT. THE GOVERNOR HAD BEEN SALVAGED FROM A HELICOPTER THAT HAD BEEN IN AN ACCIDENT IN BRAZIL. THE CORROSION WAS INDICATIVE OF LONG TERM EXPOSURE TO THE ENVIRONMENT.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Hughes 369 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 Aug 1982 | Hughes 369D | Shelton, Washington, United States | Olympic Air, Inc. | No injuries | - |
| 28 Jul 1982 | Hughes 369D | Near Bornite, Alaska, United States | Sunshine Copters | Fatal | - |
| 6 May 1982 | Hughes 369HS | Gooding, Idaho, United States | Thomas Heli | Serious injuries | - |
| 20 Jul 1982 | Hughes 369D | Creswell, Oregon, United States | Mazama Timber Products Company | No injuries | - |
| 26 Jan 1982 | Hughes 369D | 10MI. Nw Walsen, Colorado, United States | Russell Lyon | Minor injuries | - |
| 13 Aug 1982 | Hughes 369D | Meredith, Colorado, United States | Vertecare | Serious injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 Jul 1982 | Piper PA-38 | Antioch, Illinois, United States | Omni Flight Helicopters | No injuries | - |
| 27 Mar 1982 | Cessna 175 | Tuscola, Illinois, United States | Charles E. Zalewski | Minor injuries | - |
| 9 Feb 1982 | Piper PA-28R-201 | Mattoon, Illinois, United States | Edwin D. Buxton | No injuries | - |
| 8 May 1982 | Cessna 182 | Ottawa, Illinois, United States | Donald K. Murdock | Minor injuries | - |
| 8 Feb 1982 | Cessna 152 | Lansing, Illinois, United States | Associated Air Activities | No injuries | - |
| 5 Oct 1982 | Cessna T210L | Lansing, Illinois, United States | Pyramid Transportation Company | Serious injuries | - |