- Date
- May 2, 1982, 16:00 local (20:00 UTC)
- Place
- New Paltz, NY
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N116SHiller UH-12A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 2, 1983
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19820502037979A
- Case key
- 71988
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
While cruising at 400 ft AGL, the pilot noticed a decay in the main rotor RPM; however, the engine RPM was reported to have remained constant. The pilot suspected a mechanical failure and elected to make a precautionary landing in an apple orchard. During the landing, the helicopter contacted an apple tree and landed hard. During the landing, the skids were bent, the windshield was broken, the fuselage structure was buckled, and the tail rotor was damaged.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N116S
- Reported as
- Hiller UH-12A
- Category
- Helicopter
- Engine
- Franklin O-335, 178 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Steve Charles Sladky
- Registered owner
- Steve Charles Sladky
- Departed
- Kingston, NY
- Destination
- Greenwood Lake, NY
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
- 29
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Flight hours
- 88 total · 39 in this make and model · 59 as pilot in command · 4 in the last 90 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Temperature
- 149 °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 N116S · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.