# Accident 20041015028309A: Hughes OH6A, Jacumba, CA, October 15, 2004

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: October 15, 2004, 01:15 local time
- Place: Jacumba, CA
- Damage: Minor damage
- Phase of flight: Low Level Operations
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 32.6161° N, 116.1650° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=32.6161&lon=-116.1650&mi=10
- Aircraft: N6639R, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N6639R-2021-08-07) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Hughes OH-6A (registry code 4470905, https://openairdocs.org/model/hughes-oh-6a) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: HUGHES OH6A
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 0
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX05TA008](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX05TA008) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20041015028309A

## Narrative

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

(-23) ON OCTOBER 15, 2004, ABOUT 0115 PDT, A HUGHES OPERATED BY US BORDER PATROL COLLIDED WITH THE TERRAIN WHILE PERFORMING LOW ALTITUDE MANEUVERS. ACCORDING TO THE PILOT HE WAS ASSISTING BORDER PATROL GROUND UNITS WITH A GROUP OF ILLEGAL ALIENS IN MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN ABOUT 4 MILES WEST OF JACUMBA. THE OBSERVER WHO WAS NOT A PILOT DID NOT RECOGNIZE THE DANGEROUS TERRAIN AS THE PILOT MANEUVERED THE HELICOPTER IN A TURNING DESCENT. THIS INCIDENT IS NOT RELATED TO A NMAC OR PILOT DEVIATION.

## 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 LAX05TA008](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX05TA008), Oct 15, 2004: Hughes OH-6A (N6639R), Jacumba, CA, substantial damage. Probable cause: the pilot's failure to maintain adequate clearance from the mountainous terrain, which resulted in the helicopter's tail rotor blades impacting rocks. A factor in the accident was the pilot's…

## Other reports on N6639R (1)

Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.

- [Accident 20210205001189A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20210205001189A), Feb 5, 2021: Hughes OH-6A (N6639R), Horseshoe Bend, ID, Substantial damage. During a predator mitigation flight and while in a hover the pilot moved to line up a shot on a wolf and at very low airspeed and altitude the engine spooled…

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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