# Accident 19881212054029A: Hughes 369D, Kountze, TX, December 12, 1988

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: December 12, 1988, 14:18 local time
- Place: Kountze, TX
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Hovering
- Operating rules: Rotorcraft external load (Part 133)
- Operator: YELL
- Location: 30.3692° N, 94.3097° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=30.3692&lon=-94.3097&mi=10
- Aircraft: N58261 (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: HUGHES 369D
- Reported engine: ALLSN 250C20B
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 6,000 total, 2,700 in this make and model, 300 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB FTW89DRA01](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW89DRA01) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19881212054029A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

RAN OUT OF FUEL SPRAYING TREES. SLING LOAD CAUGHT IN TREES CAUSING CRASH. LOW FUEL FLOAT WIRE BENT ON INSTALLATION.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB FTW89DRA01](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW89DRA01), Dec 12, 1988: Hughes 369D (N58261), Kountze, TX, substantial damage. Probable cause: FALSE INDICATIONS OF THE FUEL QUANTITY SYSTEM, WHICH LED THE PILOT TO BELIEVE HA HAD MORE FUEL THAN HE DID.

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft 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. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

---
OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.