- Date
- May 29, 1985, 13:00 local (18:00 UTC)
- Place
- West Liberty, IA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N8976FHughes 269C
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19850529043779A
- Case key
- 33951
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
On a downwind swath run the helicopter experienced an eng failure and the plt entered an autorotation. The plt then made a hard landing which resulted in substantial damage. Inspection of the engine revealed that the nut which retains the gear to crankshaft end had backed off allowing the gear to separate and the eng to quit. The nut safety which butts up to the nut face was not in place.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8976F
- Reported as
- Hughes 269C
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 1130252
- Airframe hours
- 3,182
- Engine
- Lycoming HIO-360, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Operator
- Donald W. Crowl, doing business as Muscatine Skyways
- Registered owner
- Loel K. Letts
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Restricted (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · March 1, 1985 · 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
- 37
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 3,550 total · 1,730 in this make and model · 3,400 as pilot in command · 70 in the last 90 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 70 °F
- Observed at
- MUT, 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.
Other investigations on N8976F · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.