# Accident 20010713016999A: Hiller UH12E, Blythe, CA, July 13, 2001 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: July 13, 2001, 08:20 local time - Place: Blythe, CA - Damage: Substantial damage - Phase of flight: Fcd/Prec Ldg From Cruise - Operating rules: Agricultural (Part 137) - Operator: H4BG - Location: 33.7504° N, 114.5105° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=33.7504&lon=-114.5105&mi=10 - Aircraft: N9281P, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N9281P-2018-01-29) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Hiller UH-12E (registry code 4360122, https://openairdocs.org/model/hiller-uh-12e) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: Lycoming VO-540 series (registry code 41534, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-vo-540-series) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: HILLER UH12E - Reported engine: LYC VO540C2A - People aboard: 1 - Fatal injuries: 0 - Pilot flight hours: 12,000 total, 2,500 in this make and model - NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX01LA245](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX01LA245) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20010713016999A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. (.19) ON JULY 13, 2001, AT 0820 HOURS PACIFIC DAYLIGHT TIME, A HILLER UH-12E, N9281P, LANDED IN SOFT SOIL AND ROLLED ONTO ITS RIGHT SIDE AT BLYTHE, CALIFORNIA. THE COMMERCIAL CERTIFICATED PILOT, THE SOLE OCCUPANT, WAS NOT INJURED; HOWEVER, THE HELICOPTER WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED. THE AERIAL APPLICATION FLIGHT WAS OPERATED UNDER 14 CFR PART 137 BY H&H AERIAL APPLICATORS. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AND NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED. THE HELICOPTER WAS OPERATING FROM A LOCAL HELIPAD NEAR THE WORK SITE. THE PILOT TOLD THE SAFETY BOARD INVESTIGATOR THAT, FOLLOWING AN APPLICATION PASS, HE SENSED A DECREASE IN ENGINE POWER AND ELECTED TO MAKE A PRECAUTIONARY LANDING. DURING THE LANDING IN A COTTON FIELD ON IRREGULAR, WET GROUND, THE RIGHT SKID SETTLED INTO THE SOIL AND THE HELICOPTER ROLLED ONTO ITS SIDE. (-23) PILOT STATED HE WAS SPRAYING DEFOLIANT ON A FIELD OF COTTON AND WAS FLAT AND STABLE DURING A SPRAYING RUN WHEN HE ENCOUNTERED AN ABRUPT PARTIAL LOSS OF POWER. HE INITIATED A PRECAUTIONARY LANDING BY ENTERING AN AUTOROTATION MANEUVER. THE PILOT ESTIMATED THE COTTON TO BE ABOUT 2 FEET TALL. THE COTTON WAS ACTUALLY 3 1/2 TALL AND THE AUTOROTATION WAS TERMINATED 12 TO 18 INCHES TOO SOON ABOVE THE GROUND. THE RESULT WAS A HARD LANDING FROM WHICH THE RIGHT SKID SLID OFF A BERM AND INITIATED THE HELICOPTER INTO A ROLL-OVER ON IT'S RIGHT SIDE. DAMAGE WAS LIMITED TO THE ROTOR BLADES AND M/R HEAD PADDLE ASSEMBLIES. SUBSEQUENT INVESTIGATION REVEALED A SHORTED "P" LEAD ON THE RIGHT MAGNETO, EFFECTIVELY REMOVING ONE OF THE TWO MAGNETOS FROM OPERATION. AIRCRAFT DOES NOT PRODUCE SUFFICIENT POWER WITH ONLY ONE OPERATIONAL MAGNETO. (.4) ON JULY 13, 2001, AT 0820 HOURS PACIFIC DAYLIGHT TIME, A HILLER UH-12E, N9281P, LANDED IN SOFT SOIL AND ROLLED ONTO ITS RIGHT SIDE AT BLYTHE, CALIFORNIA. THE COMMERCIAL CERTIFICATED PILOT, THE SOLE OCCUPANT, WAS NOT INJURED; HOWEVER, THE HELICOPTER WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED. THE AERIAL APPLICATION FLIGHT WAS OPERATED UNDER 14 CFR PART 137 BY H&H AERIAL APPLICATORS. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AND NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED. THE HELICOPTER DEPARTED FROM A LOCAL HELIPAD NEAR THE WORK SITE AT 0815. THE PILOT TOLD THE SAFETY BOARD INVESTIGATOR THAT, FOLLOWING AN APPLICATION PASS, HE SENSED A DECREASE IN ENGINE POWER AND ELECTED TO MAKE A PRECAUTIONARY LANDING. DURING THE LANDING IN A COTTON FIELD ON IRREGULAR, WET GROUND, THE RIGHT SKID SETTLED INTO THE SOIL AND THE HELICOPTER ROLLED ONTO ITS RIGHT SIDE. IN HIS REPORT TO THE SAFETY BOARD, IN THE SECTION ENTITLED "MECHANICAL MALFUNCTION FAILURE" THE PILOT CHECKED "NO." ## 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 LAX01LA245](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX01LA245), Jul 13, 2001: Hiller UH-12E (N9281P), Blythe, CA, substantial damage. Probable cause: The selection by the pilot of an unsuitable precautionary landing site on soft, uneven terrain, which resulted in a rollover. ## Other reports on N9281P (1) Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date. - [Incident 19950914035239I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19950914035239I), Sep 14, 1995: Hiller UH12E (N9281P), Blythe, CA, Minor damage. During hover to reload over loading truck engine lost power. Landed in alfalfa field. Fragments of brass in cyl. 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.