- Date
- May 3, 1990, 15:00 local (May 4, 1990, 01:00 UTC)
- Place
- Kahului, HI
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N9219FHughes 369C
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report December 14, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19900503013369A
- Case key
- 26792
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 pilots failure to ensure that adequate room existed to position the helicopter on the landing platform. Contributing to the accident was the failure of ground personnel to ensure that hazards to the landing helicopter were clear of the landing area.
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 pilot was positioning the helicopter over a wheeled landing platform after disembarking passengers. As the pilot made a hovering turn over the platform, the tail boom struck a 6 foot light pole that was attached to the front of a tug vehicle. The tug had been positioned too close to the landing platform. The tail rotor gearbox and blades separated from the tailboom.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N9219F
- Reported as
- Hughes 369C
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 6385
- Engine
- Allison 250-C20, 278 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Positioning · Part 91
- Operator
- Alex Air
- Registered owner
- Gerardin Corp.
- Flight plan
- Company VFR
- Airport
- 066 · Kahului
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
- 34
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Flight hours
- 7,700 total · 1,100 in this make and model · 7,000 as pilot in command · 200 in the last 90 days · 80 in the last 30 days · 5 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 20° at 20 knots
- Visibility
- 50 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 75 °F, dew point -0 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N9219F · 2
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.