- Date
- June 20, 1984, 07:00 local (11:00 UTC)
- Place
- Iva, SC
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N4721Sikorsky CH-19E
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19840620026009A
- Case key
- 6482
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 helicopter was being operated from sloping terrain. After returning from a spray mission, the plt remained inside the helicopter with the eng & rotor at ground idle while the ground crew refilled the spray tank. After completing the loading operation, the plt began applying power to increase the rotor RPM for takeoff. A severe ground-resonance type of vibration developed. The plt disengaged the eng & applied the rotor brake. When the rotor had stopped & the eng was secured, the plt egressed & observed that the aft end of the tail boom was laying on the ground. No pre-accident cracks or failures were found in the tail boom. Some components of the rotor sys had cracks, but none had failed or separated. The main rotor lead-lag dampers were removed & checked for time & all were within specifications. Personnel who recovered the helicopter noted that the left front landing gear strut was flat & the left rear main landing gear strut was low. They estimated the terrain was sloping 10 degs.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4721
- Reported as
- Sikorsky CH-19E
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 129028
- Airframe hours
- 4,319
- Engine
- Wright R-1300-3, 800 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Registered owner
- Ag-Rotor, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · April 18, 1984 · 79 hours before
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
- 41
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 4,793 total · 79 in this make and model · 2,988 as pilot in command
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 360° at 4 knots
- Visibility
- 5 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 73 °F, dew point 72 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- AND, 17 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.