Hughes 369HS N4467V

Summary

On 16 June 2001 at about 21:15 local time, a Hughes 369HS registered N4467V was involved in an accident near Mountain View, California, United States. 2 people were on board and one was seriously injured, one had minor injuries. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

16 June 2001 at 21:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Mountain View, California, United States

Coordinates

37.4283, -122.0244

Aircraft

Hughes 369HS

Registration

N4467V

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 133: Rotorcraft Ext. Load

Purpose of flight

Other Work Use

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Mountain View → Mountain View

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX01LA211

1 person was seriously injured.

The pilot's failure to maintain control while hovering out of ground effect. A factor was the wind gusts.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

During powerline maintenance work, the pilot lost control of the helicopter, resulting in the main rotor blades contacting a transmission line tower, and the helicopter fell to the ground. As he had on numerous occasions, the pilot flew to the tower to pickup a passenger who was performing maintenance on it. The pilot placed one of the helicopter's skids on the tower and the passenger began boarding. However, on this occasion a gust of wind was experienced and the wind direction suddenly shifted. Despite the pilot's effort to maintain control, the helicopter dynamically rolled over resulting in a main rotor blade striking the tower. Thereafter, the pilot lost total control and the helicopter fell about 90 feet to the ground. No mechanical malfunctions were reported.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.