# NTSB ERA26LA122: Hughes 269A, N1020S, Gettysburg, PA, February 21, 2026 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · Minor injuries · Class 4 · Limited · Final report - Date: February 21, 2026, 11:59 local (16:59 UTC) - Place: Gettysburg, PA - Coordinates: 39.81853, -77.25508 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.8185&lon=-77.2551&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Takeoff](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/300) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Defining event: [Takeoff: Loss of control on ground](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230) - Highest injury: Minor injuries - Injuries: 2 minor - Status: Completed, report June 25, 2026 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Investigation class: Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish - NTSB office: Eastern Region Aviation - Parties: FAA/FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 202481 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ERA26LA122 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/202481/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=202481 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA26LA122 ## Probable cause The flight instructor’s failure to identify the excess power required to lift off from soft and muddy ground, which resulted in a loss of control and subsequent collision with a hangar during takeoff. ## Findings NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause. - [Attention/monitoring: monitoring environment](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02021545): Personnel issues › Psychological · Instructor/check pilot (probable cause); cases with it: [Hughes 269A, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02021545/cases.md?model=4470402), [All aircraft, 809 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02021545/cases.md) - [Performance/control parameters](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01062000): Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability · Not attained/maintained (probable cause); cases with it: [Hughes 269A, 2 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01062000/cases.md?model=4470402), [All aircraft, 1,269 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01062000/cases.md) ## Sequence of events The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened. - [Takeoff: Loss of control on ground](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230) (defining event); cases with it: [Hughes 269A, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230/sequence.md?model=4470402), [All aircraft, 4,585 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230/sequence.md) - [Takeoff: Collision with terr/obj (non-CFIT) ](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/470); cases with it: [Hughes 269A, 7 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/470/sequence.md?model=4470402), [All aircraft, 10,189 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/470/sequence.md) ## Analysis The student pilot and the flight instructor performed a preflight inspection of the helicopter and then moved it from the hangar onto an area of soft, muddy ground outside. They pushed the helicopter as far away from the hangar as they could due to the soft ground, about 25 to 30 ft. The student pilot described that where the helicopter was positioned, it was “leaning back” with the aft portion of both skids several inches deep in the mud. During the subsequent takeoff attempt, the student pilot noted that the helicopter required the application of additional engine power than he had observed during previous takeoffs before it became “light on the skids.” During a postaccident interview, he postulated that the helicopter might have been “stuck in the mud.” The flight instructor then felt that the helicopter’s tail might strike the ground, so he nudged the cyclic control forward. Immediately after, the helicopter began moving forward toward the hangar in a significantly nose low attitude. Despite their subsequent control inputs, neither pilot was able to arrest the helicopter’s forward motion and it struck the hangar less than 2 seconds later and came to rest on its right side. The helicopter’s fuselage, tailboom, and main rotor blades were substantially damaged during the accident sequence. The flight instructor reported that there were no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures of the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation, and FAA inspectors who examined the helicopter after the accident were unable to find evidence of a preimpact mechanical malfunction or failure of the flight controls that would have precluded normal operation. Based on this information, it is likely that the helicopter suddenly dislodged itself from the soft, muddy ground during the takeoff when the flight instructor applied nose down cyclic input, which resulted in an unexpected, rapid forward movement and collision with the hangar. Had the flight instructor recognized the abnormal amount of engine power being applied by the student and discontinued the takeoff attempt, it is likely that the accident could have been avoided. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N1020S](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N1020S), registered now, S/N 26-0467, built 1966 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: HUGHES 269A (UNDESIGNATED SERIES) - Registry model: [Hughes 269A](https://openairdocs.org/model/hughes-269a) (registry code 4470402) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Lycoming HIO-360 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-hio-360-series) (registry code 41524, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Helicopter - Serial number: 26-0467 - Year built: 1966 - Airframe hours: 5618.9 - Engines: Lycoming HIO-360-B1A 180 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Instructional, Part 91 - Operator: Tactical Turtle LLC - Registered owner: Tactical Turtle LLC - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, August 17, 2025 - Destination: W05, Gettysburg, PA - Airport: None, None - Equipment: ADS-B ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Flight instructor; age 49; injuries: minor; flight instructor, commercial; instrument ratings: helicopter; medical: class 2, with waivers/limitations; last flight review February 5, 2026; seat: left; restraint: 3-point; flight hours: 7,544 total, 628 in this make and model, 7,420 as pilot in command, 79 in the last 90 days, 28 in the last 30 days - Student pilot; age 52; injuries: minor; student; medical: class 2, with waivers/limitations; seat: right; restraint: 3-point; flight hours: 62 total, 34 in this make and model, 15 in the last 90 days, 11 in the last 30 days ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 320° at 7 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 39 °F, dew point 32 °F - Altimeter: 29.95 inHg - Observed at: KRSP, 14 nm away - METAR: METAR KRSP 211654Z AUTO 32007KT 260V020 10SM CLR 04/00 A2995 RMK AO2 ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20260221003679A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20260221003679A), Feb 21, 2026: Hughes 269A, Gettysburg, PA, Substantial damage. On February 21, 2026, at 1159 eastern daylight time (EDT), a Hughes 269-A helicopter was substantially damaged when it was involved in an off-airport accident… ## Docket (6 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on June 25, 2026, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=202481. 8.2 MB in all. - Pilot/operator aircraft accident report, NTSB form 6120.1 (item 1, PDF, 10 pages, 3.9 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=20452898&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=NTSB%20Report_Recd_2-25-2026_Redacted-Rel.pdf - Record of NTSB conversations (item 2, PDF, 18 pages, 553 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=20457763&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=Record%20of%20NTSB%20Conversations_18%20Pgs_0%20Pics_Redacted-Rel.pdf - Excerpts from FAA approved rotorcraft flight manual (item 3, PDF, 4 pages, 449 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=20462286&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=Excerpts%20from%20Flight%20Manual_Redacted-Rel.pdf - FAA inspector statement (item 4, PDF, 6 pages, 824 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=20462304&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=Amended%20FAA%20Inspector%20Statement%20Recd%206%201%202026_Redacted-Rel.pdf - Investigative photographs (item 5, PDF, 4 pages, 3 photos, 1.3 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=20469815&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=Investigative%20Photographs%20v01-Rel.pdf - Release of aircraft wreckage, NTSB form 6120.15 (item 6, PDF, 1 page, 1.2 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=20464611&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=Fully%20Exctd%20Wreckage%20Release%20Form_Redacted-Rel.pdf 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. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.