19830818043959A

Accident · Substantial damage

FAA accident report · Hughes 369HS · Terminal Island, CA · August 18, 1983

Date
August 18, 1983 · 06:43 local
Place
Terminal Island, CA
Airport
Helipad
Phase of flight
Idling Rotors
Operating rules
General operating rules (Part 91)
Damage
Substantial damage
Aircraft
N90958
NTSB investigation
NTSBLAX83FA393
Reported as
Hughes 369HS
Reported engine
Allison 250C18B
People aboard
3
Fatal injuries
1
Pilot’s flight hours
9,500 total800 in this make and model110 in the last 90 days

From the FAA’s Accident/Incident Data System (AIDS), through its Aviation Safety Information Portal, as reported. The NTSB investigates accidents separately, and its record of an accident is the fuller one. The aircraft is matched to the registry by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

What happened

The FAA’s narrative, in sentence case. The FAA writes it in capitals and removes private details.

Passenger waiting to board helicopter ducked under tail contrary to instructions. Was fatally struck by tail rotor.

As the FAA filed it

PASSENGER WAITING TO BOARD HELICOPTER DUCKED UNDER TAIL CONTRARY TO INSTRUCTIONS. WAS FATALLY STRUCK BY TAIL ROTOR.

NTSB investigation

The NTSB’s investigation of this event, with its probable cause and findings. Matched to this report by N-number and date.