Hughes 269C N9593F

Summary

On 2 March 1994 at about 22:50 local time, a Hughes 269C registered N9593F, operated by William C. Moore, was involved in an accident near Merced, 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.

Date

2 March 1994 at 22:50

Classification

Accident

Location

Merced, California, United States

Nearest airport

Merced Municipal/MacReady (MCE)

Coordinates

Not recorded

Aircraft

Hughes 269C

Registration

N9593F

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

William C. Moore

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Unknown → Stockton

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX94LA146

2 people had minor injuries.

the pilot's misjudgement of the descent rate and his delayed throttle application.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was on a flight test for a CFI certificate with an FAA inspector. The inspector directed the pilot/applicant to perform a practice 180-degree autorotation, terminating with a power recovery. Upon entry, at 650 feet agl, the needles split, the rotor rpm was in the green, and the engine stabilized at 2,000 RPM. During the maneuver, the inspector noted that the helicopter was apparently going to overshoot the termination point. About 50 feet agl, the pilot began deceleration and the aircraft began to settle. At that point, the inspector still had not heard the engine rpm increase. Concerned that the throttle had not been rolled on, he took the controls and attempted to open the throttle. In spite of his efforts, the helicopter continued to settle, touched down hard about 100 feet beyond the termination point, bounced once, pitched forward, and then impacted a second time. The helicopter then rolled tail over nose finally coming to rest on its right side. A postaccident inspection failed to identify any discrepancies in the engine or power controls.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.