# Accident 20130831016689A: Robinson Helicopter Company R44 II, Caballo, NM, August 31, 2013

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: August 31, 2013, 11:45 local time
- Place: Caballo, NM
- Airport: Truth Or Consequences
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Climb
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 33.0378° N, 107.3083° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=33.0378&lon=-107.3083&mi=10
- Aircraft: N3156U, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N3156U-2018-02-13) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Robinson Helicopter R44 II (registry code 7640122, https://openairdocs.org/model/robinson-helicopter-r44-ii) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming IO-540-AE1A5 (registry code 41899, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-io-540-ae1a5) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: ROBINSON HELICOPTER COMPANY R44 II
- Reported engine: LYCOMING IO-540-AE1A5
- People aboard: 3
- Fatal injuries: 3
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Commercial pilot, flight instructor
- Pilot flight hours: 1,161 total, 632 in this make and model, 91 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CEN13FA517](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN13FA517) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20130831016689A

## Narrative

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

ON AUGUST 31, 2013, AT 11:45 MST, A ROBINSON 44II, N3156U,  COLLIDED WITH POWER WIRES WHILE ON A PLEASURE FLIGHT. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AT THE TIME AND NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED. THE AIRCRAFT WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED AND THE CERTIFICATED COMMERCIAL HELICOPTER PILOT AND TWO PASSENGERS WERE KILLED. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED AT TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES, NEW MEXICO, ON AUGUST 31, 2013, AT 11:25 MST.

## 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 CEN13FA517](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN13FA517), Aug 31, 2013: Robinson R44 II (N3156U), Caballo, NM, substantial damage, 3 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot’s failure to see and avoid power lines while maneuvering near the ground because dust stirred up by the rotor wash obscured his visibility.

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.