# Accident 20000613007929A: Hughes 269C, Topeka, KS, June 13, 2000

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: June 13, 2000, 00:07 local time
- Place: Topeka, KS
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Low Level Operations
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 39.0209° N, 95.7008° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.0209&lon=-95.7008&mi=10
- Aircraft: N9488F, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N9488F-2000-08-14) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Schweizer 269C (registry code 8059502, https://openairdocs.org/model/schweizer-269c) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: HUGHES 269C
- Reported engine: LYC HIO360D1A
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 2
- Pilot flight hours: 378 total, 149 in this make and model, 149 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CHI00GA160](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI00GA160) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20000613007929A

## Narrative

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

(-23) POLICE HELI WAS CIRCLING A HOME IMPROVEMENT STORE WHERE A BURGLAR ALARM HAD SOUNDED. POLICE OFFICERS WERE INSIDE WHILE HELI N9488F WAS CIRCLING OUTSIDE. THE HELI WAS EQUIPPED WITH NIGTH SURVEILANCE EQUIP. WHILE CIRCLING NW OF THE STORE, THE HELI BEGAN SPINNING OUT OF CONTROL THEN DOVE INTO THE GROUND AS WITNESSED BY 18 PEOPLE GATHERED ON THE HILL NEAR WHERE THE HELI CRASHED. (.4) THE POLICE HELICOPTER WAS PROVIDING NIGHT AIRBORNE SURVEILLANCE SUPPORT TO A TOPEKA, KANSAS, POLICE GROUND UNIT, WHICH HAD RESPONDED TO AN ALARM AT A BUILDING MATERIALS SUPPLY STORE. WITNESSES ON THE GROUND SAID THE HELICOPTER WAS HEADING NORTHWEST WHEN IT "STARTED SPINNING" AND "THE NOSE WENT STRAIGHT DOWN." AN EXAMINATION OF THE WRECKAGE REVEALED NO ANOMALIES. THE PILOT HAD 148.9 TOTAL HOURS IN HELICOPTERS, ALL WITHIN THE 84 DAYS PRECEDING OF THE ACCIDENT. THE WINDS REPORTED AT PHILLIP BILLARD AIRPORT, 8 MILES EAST OF THE ACCIDENT SITE WERE 180 DEGREES AT 12 KNOTS. FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION ADVISORY CIRCULAR (AC) 90-95 STATES THAT LOSS OF TAIL ROTOR EFFECTIVENESS (LTE) IS A CRITICAL, LOW-SPEED AERODYNAMIC FLIGHT CHARACTERISTIC                                                                   WHICH CAN RESULT IN AN UNCOMMANDED RAPID YAW RATE WHICH DOES NOT SUBSIDE OF ITS OWN ACCORD AND, IF NOT CORRECTED, CAN RESULT IN A LOSS OF AIRCRAFT CONTROL. HELICOPTERS ARE SUBJECTED TO CONSTANTLY CHANGING WIND DIRECTIONS AND VELOCITY. THE REQUIRED TAIL ROTOR THRUST ... IS MODIFIED BY THE EFFECTS OF THE WIND. IF AN UNCOMMANDED YAW OCCURS IN FLIGHT, IT MAY BE BECAUSE THE WIND REDUCED THE TAIL ROTOR EFFECTIVE THRUST. "THERE IS GREATER SUSCEPTIBILITY FOR LTE IN RIGHT TURNS. THIS IS ESPECIALLY TRUE DURING FLIGHT AT LOW AIRSPEED SINCE THE PILOT MAY NOT BE ABLE TO STOP ROTATION." THE LOSS OF TRANSLATIONAL LIFT IS A FLIGHT CHARACTERISTIC THAT CAN CREATE AN LTE CONDUCIVE ENVIRONMENT CAPABLE OF ADVERSELY AFFECTING AIRCRAFT CONTROLLABILITY. THE LOSS OF TRANSLATIONAL LIFT RESULTS IN INCREASED POWER DEMAND AND ADDITIONAL ANTI-TORQUE REQUIREMENTS. WHEN OPERATING AT OR NEAR MAXIMUM POWER, THIS INCREASED POWER DEMAND COULD RESULT IN A DECREASE IN ROTOR RPM.

## 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 CHI00GA160](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI00GA160), Jun 13, 2000: Schweizer 269C (N9488F), Topeka, KS, destroyed, 2 fatal. Probable cause: the pilot's failure to maintain translational lift while maneuvering, and the loss of tail rotor effectiveness. Factors relating to this accident were the tailwind, low airspeed, low rotor rpm, and…

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.

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