# NTSB IAD03LA011: Hughes 369A, N817SC, Marietta, PA, October 31, 2002 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · Serious injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: October 31, 2002, 17:00 local (22:00 UTC) - Place: Marietta, PA - Coordinates: 40.121665, -76.295829 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=40.1217&lon=-76.2958&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Maneuvering](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/450) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: Serious injuries - Injuries: 3 serious - Status: Completed, report August 26, 2003 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: FAA/FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 55983 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=IAD03LA011 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/55983/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/IAD03LA011 ## Probable cause The flight instructor 's misjudgment of the helicopter's height above the river. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Dragged wing,rotor,pod,float or tail/skid, maneuvering - altitude/clearance - misjudged, pilot in command(cfi) (cause) - terrain condition - water - In flight collision with terrain/water, maneuvering - terrain condition - water ## Analysis According to the flight instructor, he was at the controls of the helicopter, demonstrating confined area maneuvers above a river. He misjudged the helicopter's height, a skid dipped into the water, and the entire helicopter was then "pulled nose down" into the river. No mechanical deficiencies were noted. ## Factual narrative On October 31, 2002, at 1700 eastern standard time, a Hughes 369A, N817SC, was substantially damaged when it impacted the Susquehanna River while practicing confined area maneuvers, and subsequently sank near Marietta, Pennsylvania. The certificated flight instructor, the certificated private pilot and the passenger were seriously injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight that departed Lancaster Airport (LNS), Lancaster, Pennsylvania, about1630. No flight plan was filed for the local instructional flight conducted under 14 CFR Part 91. Each of the three occupants was interviewed in the hospital on the evening of the accident by an officer with the Susquehanna Police Department. According to the police report, the flight instructor said he was at the controls of the helicopter when the accident occurred. He said that he misjudged the helicopter's height above the river, and one of the skids penetrated the water. In a written statement, the flight instructor wrote, "...misjudged the helicopter height above the river. One of the helicopter skids dipped into the water which caused the helicopter to pull nose down into the water." The pilot and the passenger provided similar accounts of the accident. A Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector examined the helicopter after it was recovered from the water. According to the inspector, the tail boom was severed from the fuselage, but remained partially attached by the tail rotor drive shaft, cables, and electrical wiring. Both tail rotor blades were intact. The main rotor blades were fractured, and a 6-foot section of one blade was found on the river bank about 300 yards from where the helicopter sank in the river. A smaller section of main rotor blade was also found on the river bank about 100 yards away. No mechanical deficiencies were noted. The flight instructor held a commercial pilot certificate for rotorcraft-helicopter, and a certified flight instructor rating for rotorcraft-helicopter. He reported a total of 1,917 hours in helicopters, of which, 338 hours were in make and model. The flight instructor also reported that there were no mechanical deficiencies with the helicopter. Weather reported at Lancaster Airport, about 15 miles to the east, at 1653, included wind from 310 degrees at 6 knots, 10 statute miles visibility, and clear skies. ## Aircraft - Registration: N817SC (not matched to a registry record) - Reported make and model: Hughes 369A - Category: Helicopter - Serial number: 770089 - Airframe hours: 4518 - Engines: Allison 250 C18 317 horsepower turbo shaft - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Instructional, Part 91 - Registered owner: Lancaster Helicopters, Inc - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, September 14, 2002, 47 hours before - Departed: LNS, LANCASTER, PA - Airport: None ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Flight instructor; age 46; injuries: serious; flight instructor, commercial; medical: class 2, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; last flight review May 15, 2002; seat: left; flight hours: 2,012 total, 338 in this make and model, 1,866 as pilot in command, 111 in the last 90 days, 34 in the last 30 days, 3 in the last 24 hours - Pilot; age 39; injuries: serious; private; medical: class 2, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; last flight review February 24, 2000; seat: right; flight hours: 210 total, 1 in this make and model, 152 as pilot in command, 1 in the last 90 days, 1 in the last 30 days, 1 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Dusk - Wind: 310° at 6 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 43 °F, dew point 34 °F - Altimeter: 30.04 inHg - Observed at: LNS, 15 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 (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20021031037779A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20021031037779A), Oct 31, 2002: Hughes OH6A, Marietta, PA, Destroyed. (-23) On October 31, 2002, at 1721 hours local eastern daylight savings time, a Hughes helicopter HU-369-OH6A, N817SC, flew into the susquehanna river while… 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.