- Date
- August 2, 1982, 07:45 local (12:45 UTC)
- Place
- Wetumpka, AL
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N8801FHughes 269A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report August 2, 1983
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19820802034009A
- Case key
- 73025
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The pilot reported that at the end of a spray run, the engine lost power. He stated that the engine RPM dropped to zero, the airspeed was zero, and he established an autorotation. According to the pilot, the helicopter touched down on rough hilly terrain, bounced and rolled over on its right side. Later, when the aircraft was recovered, a crack was found in the fuel servo unit adjacent to the mixture adjustment. Reportedly, this crack would have admitted excessive amounts of air into the servo unit and would have resulted in a loss of power.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8801F
- Reported as
- Hughes 269A
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 112-0135
- Airframe hours
- 4,373
- Engine
- Lycoming HIO-360-A1A, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Operator
- John H. Johnston
- Registered owner
- John H. Johnston
- Departed
- Wetumpka, AL
- Destination
- Wetumpka, AL
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 34
- Certificate
- Private
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Flight hours
- 225 total · 167 as pilot in command · 47 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 5 statute miles
- Temperature
- 165 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.