Hughes 269A N8793F
23 May 1990 · La Verne, California, United States · Minor injuries
Summary
On 23 May 1990 at about 16:20 local time, a Hughes 269A registered N8793F, operated by Randy Polous, was involved in an accident near La Verne, California, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 had minor injuries. 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 16:20
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- La Verne, California, United States
- Nearest airport
- Brackett Field (POC)
- Coordinates
- 34.1493, -117.7595
- Aircraft
- Hughes 269A
- Registration
- N8793F
- Category
- Helicopter
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Randy Polous
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Positioning
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- La Verne → Unknown
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- LAX90LA186
People
2 people had minor injuries.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
Probable cause
GROUND RESONANCE DUE TO AN INADEQUATELY MAINTAINED STRUT.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
THE PILOT HAD BEEN ASKED BY THE OPERATOR TO FLY THE HELICOPTER PRIOR TO THE OPERATORS SIGNING A LEASEBACK AGREEMENT WITH THE REPORTED OWNER. THE INITIAL AIR TAXI TO A HELIPAD WAS ABORTED WHEN THE HELICOPTER BEGAN TO OSCILLATE DURING A GROUND RESONANCE EVENT. PRIOR TO THIS ATTEMPT THE OLEO STRUTS APPEARED TO BE OF EQUAL EXTENSION. AFTER THE EVENT, THE OLEO STRUTS WERE LOW AND ONE WAS FLAT. ABOUT 18 DAYS LATER, AND AFTER THE PILOT HAD BEEN TOLD THAT THE STRUTS HAD BEEN TAKEN CARE OF AND THAT THE OWNER HAD BEEN FLYING THE HELICOPTER AFTER A PLANNED AIR TAXI TO A HELIPAD. THE HELICOPTER AGAIN EXPERIENCED A GROUND RESONANCE EVENT WITH SEVERE OSCILLATIONS TO THE POINT OF DESTRUCTION. THE PILOT SAID HE LOWERED THE COLLECTIVE AND DECREASED THE THROTTLE WHEN THE OSCILLATIONS BEGAN. ATTEMPTS TO OBTAIN THE MAINTENANCE RECORDS AND COMPONENTS OF THE HELICOPTER FOR TESTING WERE UNSUCCESSFUL.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Hughes 269 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 May 1990 | Hughes 269C | Fort Pierce, Florida, United States | Flight Safety International | Minor injuries | - |
| 23 May 1990 | Hughes 269C | Rialto, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 22 May 1990 | Hughes 269A | Bremerton, Washington, United States | Eric P. Bass | No injuries | - |
| 7 Jun 1990 | Hughes 269B | Paso Robles, California, United States | Dolezal, Todd R. | No injuries | - |
| 29 Jun 1990 | Hughes 269C | Carlsbad, California, United States | Flight Trails Helicopters | Minor injuries | - |
| 25 Sep 1990 | Hughes 269C | Jefferson, Maryland, United States | New Horizon Aviation, Inc. | Fatal | 1 |
All 1,213 records for this type
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 Apr 1990 | Cessna 180 | Soledad, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 10 Oct 1990 | Cessna 150 | Riverside, California, United States | PAR Flight | No injuries | - |
| 17 Apr 1990 | Piper PA46 | Paso Robles, California, United States | Piper Aircraft Corp. | No injuries | - |
| 7 Oct 1990 | Cessna 182M | Bakersfield, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 1 Apr 1990 | Piper J-3 | Creston, California, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 11 Oct 1990 | Bell 47G4 | Merced, California, United States | John W. Myers | Serious injuries | - |