- Date
- October 21, 2003, 08:45 local (13:45 UTC)
- Place
- Evansville, MN
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N49TJHughes 369HS
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 2, 2004
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA -- Minneapolis FSDO
- FAA report
- 20031021029219A
- Case key
- 58234
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot's misjudgment of clearance from the surface of the lake during the aerial application pass. The low altitude operation, glassy water, and his visual perception were contributing factors.
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 substantially damaged during an in-flight collision with a lake while conducting an aerial application pass. The local flight was operating from a temporary load site near the lake shoreline. The pilot stated: "The conditions were calm winds, sun coming up over the trees to the east, glassy water condition. During the spray run I must [have] lost my depth perception with the water surface and allowed the skids to contact the water. The aircraft decelerated rapidly ... [and] water came up over the bubble as the aircraft pitched forward." The pilot also noted that he should have "looked at the trees along the shoreline for a vertical reference instead of at the water. With glassy water it is hard to judge distance." He reported there were no malfunctions with the aircraft or engine prior to the accident.
Factual narrative
On October 21, 2003, at 0845 central daylight time, a Hughes 369HS helicopter, N49TJ, piloted by a commercial pilot, was substantially damaged during an in-flight collision with Lake Christina near Evansville, Minnesota. The pilot was conducting an aerial application pass over the lake at the time of the accident. The flight was operating under 14 CFR Part 137 and was not on a flight plan. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed. The pilot sustained minor injuries. The local flight was operating from a temporary load site near the lake shoreline.
The pilot reported in his written statement that he departed from the load site about 0840. This was his sixth spray load of the day. He stated: "The conditions were calm winds, sun coming up over the trees to the east, glassy water condition. During the spray run I must [have] lost my depth perception with the water surface and allowed the skids to contact the water. The aircraft decelerated rapidly. ... Water came up over the bubble as the aircraft pitched forward."
After the accident, the pilot noted that he should have "looked at the trees along the shoreline for a vertical reference instead of at the water. With glassy water it is hard to judge distance."
The pilot reported no malfunctions with the aircraft or engine prior to the accident.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N49TJ
- Reported as
- Hughes 369HS
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 550747S
- Airframe hours
- 9,394
- Engine
- Allison 250-C20, 400 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Registered owner
- Big Bird Leasing Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Restricted (Special)
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · August 19, 2003 · 35 hours before
- Departed
- N/A · Lake Christina, MN
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
- 43
- Injuries
- Minor
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane, Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Last flight review
- December 4, 2002
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 6,588 total · 1,230 in this make and model · 6,488 as pilot in command · 154 in the last 90 days · 7 in the last 30 days · 7 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 340° at 3 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 9,000 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 46 °F, dew point 43 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.02 inHg
- Observed at
- AXN, 19 nm away
Docket · 3
The files NTSB released with the investigation on April 13, 2004, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 520 KB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.