Hughes 369D N58424

Summary

On 10 August 2017 at about 20:00 local time, a Hughes 369D registered N58424, operated by Patrol Helicopters Inc., was involved in an accident near Villa Grove, Colorado, United States. One person was on board and one was seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

10 August 2017 at 20:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Villa Grove, Colorado, United States

Coordinates

38.2544, -105.9478

Aircraft

Hughes 369D

Registration

N58424

Category

Helicopter

Year built

1979

Engines

1

Operator

Patrol Helicopters Inc.

Operating rule

Part 133: Rotorcraft Ext. Load

Purpose of flight

External Load

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Villa Grove → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN17LA314

1 person was seriously injured.

The pilot’s failure to maintain main rotor clearance from a power line tower during low-level maneuvering.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The commercial pilot was conducting external load operations in the helicopter to assist power line construction. While maneuvering the helicopter away from a tower at low altitude, the pilot flew the helicopter to the right while planning on backing up at the same time. The helicopter's speed to the right was faster than he had planned. Subsequently, the helicopter's main rotor hit a tower before it came into the pilot's view, and the helicopter then impacted terrain. The pilot reported that the helicopter did not have any mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. Given the pilot's statement, it is likely that he was not adequately monitoring the environment during low-level maneuvering among power line towers and failed to see a tower before the main rotors hit it.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.