ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 134747
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| Date: | Tuesday 28 May 2002 |
| Time: | 15:24 |
| Type: |  McDonnell Douglas MD 500E (369E) |
| Owner/operator: | Private |
| Registration: | VH-HJT |
| MSN: | 0134E |
| Year of manufacture: | 1985 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 4 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Western Tiers, TAS -
 Australia
|
| Phase: | Approach |
| Nature: | Passenger - Non-Scheduled/charter/Air Taxi |
| Departure airport: | Lake Nameless, Tasmania |
| Tom Whitleys Hut, Tasmania | |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information verified through data from accident investigation authorities |
The Hughes 369E helicopter, with the pilot the sole occupant, departed Strahan aerodrome at 0815 hours Eastern Standard Time (EST) for charter operations in the Western Tiers area of north-western Tasmania. Multiple flights were required from a base at Lake Mackenzie to a number of dispersed mountain hut locations. The flights involved transport of varying amounts of external loads and personnel, and included extensive periods on the ground with the helicopter engine running.
At approximately 1500 hours the pilot conducted a flight with an external load from Lake Mackenzie to Lake Nameless Hut. He then landed to embark three passengers for transfer to another hut. Two of the passengers occupied the remaining two front seats and the third passenger occupied the cabin right rear seat. The pilot reported that, while on the ground, the fuel low level advisory light had momentarily illuminated, but that he attributed that illumination to the distribution of fuel in the tank due to the slope of the ground. At that time, he reported also noting 100 lbs (86.9 lbs useable) of fuel indicated on the fuel quantity indicator. At 1515 hours, the helicopter departed Lake Nameless Hut for Tom Whitely's Hut, which was located approximately 5 km to the north-east.
A passenger reported that, during that flight, a caution advisory light had illuminated. The investigation could not confirm the identity of that light. Having overflown the hut landing area, the pilot initiated a left descending turn to the south prior to commencing an approach to land.
The pilot reported that at 1524 hours, as the helicopter descended through about 200 ft above ground level (AGL), and at a speed of 70 kts, the main rotor speed decreased and the engine auto reignition advisory light illuminated. Assessing that the engine had lost power, the pilot reported that he initiated an autorotation to land. He stated that "...the aircraft landed normally, although heavily". He reported that, after the initial ground contact, the aircraft was "...suddenly rotated through 180 degrees". That rotation was reported by the pilot to be as a result of entanglement with an unseen "...little wire or whatever hooked the aircraft".
The helicopter was destroyed by impact forces. There was no fire. The pilot and three passengers sustained serious injuries.
Sources:
1. http://www.atsb.gov.au/publications/investigation_reports/2002/aair/aair200202442.aspx
2. https://www.ntsb.gov/aviationquery/brief.aspx?ev_id=20020808X01336&key=1
History of this aircraft
Other occurrences involving this aircraft
| 10 May 1990 | N5217N | Rogers Helicopters Inc | 0 | Firebaugh, California |  |
sub |
| Heavy landing | ||||||
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 04-May-2014 04:28 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Time, Cn, Operator, Other fatalities, Location, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 07-Jun-2022 13:04 | Ron Averes | Updated [Location] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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