Hughes 369D accident near Hana, Hawaii, February 20, 2024
On February 20, 2024 at about 7:15 pm local time, a 1978 Hughes 369D (helicopter), registered N690WA, was substantially damaged in an accident during enroute near Hana, Hawaii. It was an other work-use flight under public-use (government) rules. No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s failure to ensure the passenger’s gear was properly secured before departure.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 20, 2024 · about 7:15 pm local time · cases in 2024
- Place
- Hana, Hawaii · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Hughes 369D, built 1978 · all 369Ds on the register
- Registration
- N690WA · registry record · serial 1170237D
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Other work-use flight · public-use (government) rules
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported that after landing at a remote landing zone (LZ) to pick up a single passenger, the passenger loaded their gear in the aft right seat and secured it with a seatbelt. While enroute, the two occupants heard a “loud and violent bang” and the nose of the helicopter moved to the right and vibrations followed. The pilot looked back at the tail rotor, saw it was spinning freely, and confirmed the tail rotor drive train had failed. The pilot performed an autorotation to an open field. A post flight inspection revealed that the passenger’s rain pants were missing from the aft right seat. It was determined that the rain pants had exited the helicopter and impacted the tail rotor resulting in substantial damage to the fuselage, tail boom, horizontal stabilizer and tail rotor assembly and gearbox. The pilot stated that there were no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
What happened, in order
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during enroute defining event
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Inspection › Preflight inspection › Pilot
- Personnel issues › Action/decision › Info processing/decision › Expectation/assumption › Pilot
- Personnel issues › Action/decision › Info processing/decision › Understanding/comprehension › Passenger
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 3,488 hours in all; 2,412 in this make and model; 132 in the last 90 days; 43 in the last 30 days; 3,425 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: December 4, 2023
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Passenger
- Seat: frt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 22,452.3 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, February 12, 2024; 20.2 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,000 lb
- Seats: 5
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rolls-Royc 250-C20B (turboshaft); 24,486 hours total
- Operator: Windward Aviation INC
The flight
- Departed from: PHOG Kahului HI at 6:43 pm
- Destination: PHOG Kahului HI
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: a few clouds at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Altimeter: 30.20 inHg
- Observation at 9:54 am from PHOG, 25 miles away
Weather report (METAR): PHOG 201954Z 00000KT 10SM FEW050 24/12 A3020 RMK AO2 SLP231 T02440122
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
Photographs from the investigation 5 pictures from the NTSB's docket, as the NTSB released them
Photograph 1 – Accident helicopter at accident site
Photograph 2 – View of the horizontal stabilizer
Photograph 3 – View of the horizontal stabilizer
Photograph 4 – View of the left side of the tail rotor
Photograph 5 – View of the damage to the tail rotor drive shaftThe NTSB's photographs with the NTSB's captions, at screen size. Open a picture to see it full size or to report one that should not be shown.
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
2 documents, released by the NTSB on December 2, 2024. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.
| # | Document | What it is | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pilot/operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 | PDF, 11 pages | View Download |
| 2 | Investigative Photographs | PDF, 6 pages · our copy | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N690WA on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Hughes 369 500 series helicopters 123 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Hughes 386 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Rolls-Royc 250-C20B 216 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Kahului Airport · departed from
- Accidents and incidents in Hawaii 524 since 1982 · 86 in the last ten years
- Hawaii 650 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/ANC24LA016.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.