- Date
- May 27, 1987, 20:00 local (May 28, 1987, 01:00 UTC)
- Place
- Hawesville, KY
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N9180FHughes 369HS
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 2, 1988
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19870527047709A
- Case key
- 7246
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
During a weed control spraying operation, the pilot experienced a power failure 45 feet above the ground. The autorotation attempt resulted in the helicopter impacting the ground on it's left side. The investigation disclosed that the flexible fuel line to the engine driven fuel pump was loose at the b-nut. The engine assembly was installed about seven hours prior to the accident. There were no other system failures. It was apparent that the b-nut was not properly secured when the engine was last installed.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N9180F
- Reported as
- Hughes 369HS
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 340570S
- Engine
- Allison 250-C20, 400 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Operator
- Helicopter Minit-Men,Inc.
- Registered owner
- Helicopter Minit-Men, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · May 20, 1987 · 7 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
- 50
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter, Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 6,328 total · 371 in this make and model · 7 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 10,000 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 90 °F, dew point -0 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.