Hughes 369E accident near Intercession, FL
On May 20, 1999, a Hughes 369E (helicopter) was involved in an accident near Intercession, FL. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- May 20, 1999
- Place
- Intercession, FL
- Aircraft
- Hughes 369E · Helicopter
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 1 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 28.260°N, 81.500°W
- NTSB ID
- 20001212X18834
Official records · MIA99FA158
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On May 20, 1999, about 1300 eastern daylight time, a Hughes 369E, N144CM, registered to Vortex Helicopter LLC, operated by Air 2, as a 14 CFR Part 91 external load flight, crashed in the vicinity of Florida Power Corporation, Intercession City sub station, Intercession City, Florida. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The helicopter sustained substantial damage. The commercial pilot sustained serious injuries, and a lineman located on a cargo platform on the left side of the helicopter was fatally injured. The flight originated from a landing zone (LZ) located at the Intercession City substation about 1 hour 15 minutes before the accident. The pilot stated he had been conducting operations in and out of the LZ with another helicopter, and had hot refueled three times before the accident flight. Each time he returned to the LZ, he had about 100 pounds of fuel remaining, and would add about 220 pounds of fuel to the helicopter. He could not recall the exact time that he departed on the third flight. He returned to the work site area and was working south of the accident site. The other helicopter (N58377) joined up with him before they relocated to structure No. WIC 134. He approached the structure on a heading of about 140 degrees magnetic, came to an out of ground effect hover at about 75 feet agl, and moved in next to the stringing block. N58377 remained off his left side and was photographing there operation. Right before the emergency, he pulled off the structure so the photographer on N58377 could change film in hi
Probable cause
The pilot's improper fuel management that resulted in fuel exhaustion and a total loss of engine power.
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Browse: Florida · Hughes aircraft
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
