# Accident 20200530007249A: Schweizer 269C-1, Ozark, AL, May 30, 2020

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: May 30, 2020, 11:30 local time
- Place: Ozark, AL
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Cruise/Level Flight
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 31.4414° N, 85.6383° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=31.4414&lon=-85.6383&mi=10
- Aircraft: N9421P, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N9421P-2021-04-05) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Schweizer 269C-1 (registry code 8059504, https://openairdocs.org/model/schweizer-269c-1) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming HO-360 series (registry code 41513, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-ho-360-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: SCHWEIZER 269C-1
- Reported engine: LYCOMING HO-360
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Commercial pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 340 total, 67 in this make and model
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ERA20LA197](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA20LA197) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20200530007249A

## Narrative

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

PILOT WAS CONDUCTING HIS LAST SCHEDULED SOLO FLIGHT OF 1.1 HOURS.  WITNESSES STATE THAT THE HELICOPTER SEEMED TO BE EXPERIENCING ENGINE TROUBLE AS INDICATED BY THE ENGINE SOUNDS THEY COULD HEAR SUCH AS A "SPITTING AND SPUTTERING".  THE AIRCRAFT TURNED AND CONTINUED APPROXIMATELY 750 FEET BEFORE THE ENGINE FAILURE OCCURRED, CAUSING THE AIRCRAFT TO DROP THROUGH A LARGE TREE IN A RESIDENTIAL AREA.  AIRCRAFT WAS COMPLETELY DESTROYED. LARGE TREE LIMBS AND DEBRIS WERE COVERING MUCH OF THE WRECKAGE.

## 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 ERA20LA197](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA20LA197), May 30, 2020: Schweizer 269C-1 (N9421P), Ozark, AL, destroyed, 1 fatal. Probable cause: A total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion. Contributing to the accident was the flight school’s inadequate maintenance of the helicopter’s fuel quantity and caution systems.

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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