Accident Hughes 369D N521ZZ,
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ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 43286
 
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Date:Saturday 24 January 1998
Time:03:00
Type:Silhouette image of generic H500 model; specific model in this crash may look slightly different    
Hughes 369D
Owner/operator:Big Eye Helicopter
Registration: N521ZZ
MSN: 970190D
Year of manufacture:1977
Engine model:Allison 250-C20B
Fatalities:Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 2
Aircraft damage: Destroyed
Category:Accident
Location:Pacific Ocean -   Pacific Ocean
Phase: Unknown
Nature:Survey
Departure airport:
Destination airport:
Investigating agency: NTSB
Confidence Rating: Accident investigation report completed and information captured
Narrative:
The pilot and observer took off from the ship on an aerial observation flight to herd fish. The pilot climbed to about 400 feet, spotted fish, turned downwind, and descended into the prevailing 15-knot tailwind. Neither the descent nor the turn was arrested. The helicopter changed its heading 180 degrees, and the descent continued until the helicopter impacted the water. The helicopter sank and was not recovered. The operator reported that before the pilot died he stated that no engine problems had been experienced. The pilot indicated that he had erred in controlling the helicopter. CAUSE: The pilot's failure to adequately compensate for the wind condition and failure to maintain a proper rate of descent which resulted in the inadvertent loss of tail rotor effectiveness during a downwind turn.

Sources:

NTSB: http://www.ntsb.gov/ntsb/brief.asp?ev_id=20001211X09469

Revision history:

Date/timeContributorUpdates
24-Oct-2008 10:30 ASN archive Added
21-Dec-2016 19:24 ASN Update Bot Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency]

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