Hughes OH-6A accident near Atlanta, GA
On November 4, 2012, a Hughes OH-6A (helicopter) was involved in an accident near Atlanta, GA. 2 people died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- November 4, 2012
- Place
- Atlanta, GA
- Aircraft
- Hughes OH-6A · Helicopter
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 33.753°N, 84.467°W
- NTSB ID
- 20121104X05051
Official records · ERA13GA046
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
Air traffic control records
- ATC - Radar Plot - Fig 1: Document (PDF), on ntsb.gov
- ATC - Radar Plot - Fig 2: Document (PDF), on ntsb.gov
- ATC - Radar Plot - Fig 3: Document (PDF), on ntsb.gov
- ATC - Radar Data - Raw: Document (XLSX), on ntsb.gov
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On November 3, 2012, about 2245 eastern daylight time, a Hughes OH-6A, N368PD, was substantially damaged following a collision with power lines and terrain while maneuvering at Atlanta, Georgia. The commercial pilot and a pilot-rated tactical flight officer (TFO) were fatally injured. The helicopter was registered to and operated by the Atlanta Police Department (APD) as a public use flight. Night, visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The flight originated at Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) at 2224. The purpose of the flight was to support ground-based police personnel in locating a missing child. The search area was about 6 to 7 nautical miles northwest of ATL. The pilot was flying in the right cockpit seat and the TFO was in the left cockpit seat. A review of recorded APD voice communications revealed that the TFO made a "three minutes out" call, a "two minutes out" call, and then he reported that the flight was "26" (on station). There were no distress calls received from the flight crew prior to the accident. The helicopter was observed on radar, maneuvering, immediately prior to the accident. The radar data revealed that the helicopter traveled southbound, across Interstate 20, at about 1,300 feet above mean sea level (msl). The helicopter was then observed in a left turn of about 270 degrees, to a westerly heading. The last three recorded radar returns showed the helicopter at 1,200 feet msl (about 200 feet above ground level). The last recorded radar return was about 0.17 nm east of the acci
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain sufficient altitude during maneuvering flight, which resulted in his failure to see and avoid a power pole and wires.
More accidents in GA
- Embraer EMB-120RT, Apr 5, 1991
- Cessna 208, Sep 29, 1985
- Beech 400, Dec 11, 1991
- Embraer EMB-120RT, Aug 21, 1995
- Mitsubishi MU-2B-30, Apr 20, 1982
Browse: Georgia · 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.
