Hughes 269C accident near Chapman, Alabama, October 10, 1985
On October 10, 1985 at about 8:15 pm local time, a Hughes 269C (helicopter), registered N7451F, was destroyed in an accident near Chapman, Alabama. It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under external-load helicopter rules (Part 133). 2 people had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 10, 1985 · about 8:15 pm local time
- Place
- Chapman, Alabama
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Hughes 269C · all 269Cs on the register
- Registration
- N7451F · no longer on the register · serial 660514
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · external-load helicopter rules (Part 133)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING AN ATTEMPTED TAKEOFF FROM A FIELD ADJACENT TO A GROVE OF TREES THE AIRCRAFT WAS UNABLE TO CLIMB OVER THE TREES AND CRASHED INTO THEM. THE ENGINE WAS TEST RUN AND ALTHOUGH IT RAN ROUGH DURING INITIAL START UP IT LATER OPERATED NORMALLY AND THE REASON FOR THE INITIAL PROBLEM WAS NOT DETERMINED.
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
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: helicopter; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 3,167 hours in all; 1,500 in this make and model; 114 in the last 90 days; 3,095 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,235 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, August 15, 1985; 65 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,670 lb
- Seats: 3
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming HIO-360 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Chapman AL at 7:13 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 350° at 60 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 82°F (28°C), dew point 59°F (15°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:00 pm
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
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 never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.