# Accident 20080525838339A: Hughes 369E, Sunrise Beach, MO, May 25, 2008

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: May 25, 2008, 19:21 local time
- Place: Sunrise Beach, MO
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Hovering
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 38.1811° N, 92.6581° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=38.1811&lon=-92.6581&mi=10
- Aircraft: N686F (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: HUGHES 369E
- People aboard: 3
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Pilot flight hours: 2,360 total, 350 in this make and model, 33 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB DEN08FA092](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/DEN08FA092) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20080525838339A

## Narrative

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

(-23) FOLLOWING A LOCAL SIGHTSEEING FLIGHT, THE PIC WAS RETURNING TO HIS PRIVATE LANDIING PAD. GUSTY WINDS WERE PRESENT IN THE COVE WHERE HIS HELIPAD WAS LOCATED. ACCORDING TO PILOT-RATED WITNESSES, THE HELICOPTER WAS MANEUVERING SLOWLY AND THEN HOVERED APPROXIMATELY 200 FEET FROM THE PAD AT ABOUT 75 FEET OVER THE WATER WHEN SUDDENLY THE HELICOPTER BEGAN A SERIES OF UNCOMMANDED RIGHT TURNS ABOUT ITS VERTICAL AXIS AND BEGAN TO LOSE ALTITUDE. THE HELICOPTER IMPACTED THE WATER, AND THE FRONT WINDSCREENS SHATTERED. WATER ENTERED THE CABIN AREA, AND THE HELICOPTER BEGAN TO SINK. FOUR OF THE FIVE OCCUPANTS MANAGED TO EGRESS; HOWEVER, ONE PASSENGER REMAINED IN THE CABIN AND DROWNED. POST-ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION DAMAGE TO THE TAIL ROTOR DRIVE SHAFT WAS CONSISTENT WITH TORSIONAL OVERSTRESS INDICATIVE OF A TAIL ROTOR STRIKING A SURFACE WITH POWER. A FLIGHT CONTROLS CONFORMITY CHECK SHOWED NO PRE-CRASH ABNORMALITIES. THE AIRCRAFT WAS CONFIGURED WITH SEATS AND RESTRAINTS FOR FOUR OCCUPANTS.

## 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 DEN08FA092](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/DEN08FA092), May 26, 2008: McDonnell Douglas Helicopter C MD 500E (N686F), Sunrise Beach, MO, substantial damage, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The loss of tail rotor effectiveness and the pilot's failure to regain aircraft control. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's decision to fly in known adverse weather conditions and the gusty…

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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