- Date
- January 12, 1984, 12:30 local (16:30 UTC)
- Place
- San Juan, PR
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 1 uninjured
- Damage
- No damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N5317VHiller UH-12C
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19840112028009A
- Case key
- 30964
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
A performer fell from a trapeze rigged below the helicopter while it was hovering at about 150 ft AGL. The FAA had not authorized the modification to the acft. The plt was not certified for external load operations. The performer reportedly had not done this act before and was not in excellent physical condition.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5317V
- Reported as
- Hiller UH-12C
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 768
- Airframe hours
- 1,572
- Engine
- Franklin VO-335, 250 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- No damage
- Flight
- Part 91
- Operator
- Hector Gratacos
- Registered owner
- Aero-Med Express
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · May 14, 1983 · 20 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
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Center
- Flight hours
- 1,450 total · 609 in this make and model · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 80° at 12 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 82 °F, dew point 72 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- SJU, 8 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.
Other investigations on N5317V · 3
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.