Hughes 369D N138WH

Summary

On 7 November 2017 at about 15:34 local time, a Hughes 369D registered N138WH, operated by Winco, Inc., was involved in an accident near Sulphur, Louisiana, United States. 3 people were on board and 2 died. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

7 November 2017 at 15:34

Classification

Accident

Location

Sulphur, Louisiana, United States

Coordinates

30.2819, -93.3844

Aircraft

Hughes 369D

Registration

N138WH

Category

Helicopter

Year built

1981

Engines

1

Operator

Winco, Inc.

Operating rule

Part 133: Rotorcraft Ext. Load

Purpose of flight

External Load

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Sulphur → Sulphur

Aircraft damage

Not recorded

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN18LA026

2 people died.

The pilot's failure to maintain adequate separation between a long line being used to hoist linemen from a shield wire during an external load flight, which resulted in the long line being severed.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The commercial pilot was conducting an external load flight with two linemen hoisted beneath the helicopter on a long line. The pilot reported that, as he maintained a hover over the power lines, the long line contacted the shield wire as one of the linemen held onto a conductor bundle. The long line severed about midspan as the pilot turned the helicopter into the wind and attempted to move the linemen away from the conductor bundle. The two linemen were fatally injured when they fell about 100 ft to the ground. The pilot returned to the landing zone and landed uneventfully. The pilot did not report any preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation. Video footage of the accident confirmed that the helicopter's synthetic long line severed after extended lateral contact with the braided steel shield wire.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.