Pilot Debrief

HUGHES 369D near Lake City, KS — 2021-03-25

Final reportCEN21LA165
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Date
2021-03-25
Location
Lake City, KS, USA
Aircraft
HUGHES 369D
Registration
N41AJ
Category
Helicopter
Highest injury
None
Fatalities
0

Probable cause

The pilot’s failure to maintain clearance from power lines during power line maintenance.

NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that while hovering near power lines, for the purpose of installing bird diverters, a gust of wind pushed the helicopter “into the OPGW wire.” The pilot repositioned the helicopter away from the wire and then saw it fly up and into the rotor system. He immediately started a controlled landing and safely landed the helicopter. The helicopter sustained substantial damage to all five rotor blades. The pilot reported that there were no mechanical anomalies with the helicopter before the wire strike that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot reported that the helicopter operator is adding local weather stations to augment reported weather when the flight crews are working in remote areas. Additionally, for skid operations, the operator has restricted the steady state wind and gust spreads by zone for the helicopter.

NTSB coding

Evidence available

  • Photos
  • 2 docket documents
View NTSB final reportView NTSB docket

Docket documents2

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