Hughes 269B accident near Sullivan, Ohio, May 3, 2006
On May 3, 2006 at about 11:00 pm local time, a Hughes 269B (helicopter), registered N9471F, was substantially damaged in an accident near Sullivan, Ohio. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
Fatigue failure of the fuselage-to-tail boom cluster fitting, and the secondary failure of the tail rotor drive shaft. An additional cause was the incomplete compliance with an applicable Airworthiness Directive. A factor was the ditch.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 3, 2006 · about 11:00 pm local time
- Place
- Sullivan, Ohio · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Hughes 269B · all 269Bs on the register
- Registration
- N9471F · no longer on the register · serial 106-0267
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The helicopter was substantially damaged when a tail boom support fitting failed during cruise flight, which resulted in a secondary failure of the tail rotor drive shaft. The pilot initiated an autorotation and encountered a ditch during touchdown, causing the right skid to collapse. The pilot reported that the helicopter was in cruise flight when he heard a "very loud" bang. He stated that the aircraft began to yaw and he subsequently determined the aircraft had no tail rotor authority. He set up for a run-on landing to a field; however, he subsequently heard a "metal grinding sound" and a "high pitched squealing noise." He initiated an autorotation at that time. The pilot reported a "sensation of the tail boom swinging left [and] right, up [and] down." The helicopter encountered a ditch during touchdown, which collapsed the right skid. Upon exiting the helicopter, the pilot noticed that the left main tail boom support (cluster) fitting had broken loose from the frame. The tail rotor drive shaft and cluster fitting were examined by the National Transportation Safety Board Materials Laboratory. Damage to the tail rotor drive shaft was consistent with an overstress failure and appeared to be caused by rotational contact between the drive shaft and the forward tail boom closure fitting. The cluster fitting exhibited fracture markings indicative of fatigue. Fracture features on both lugs indicated localized fatigue origin areas on the outer surfaces of each lug. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2003-13-15 R1, which became effective August 10, 2004, was applicable to the accident aircraft. The AD noted that compliance was required in order "to prevent failure of a tailboom support strut or lug on a cluster fitting." The AD required modification or replacement of the original cluster fittings, part numbers 269A2234 and 269A2235, within 6 months or 150 hours time-in-service (TIS). The AD required dye penetrant inspections of the lugs within 10 hours TIS, and thereafter at intervals not to exceed 50 hours TIS, until the lugs were modified or replaced. Nominal measured lug thickness was 0.076 inch, which was consistent with the original cluster fitting configuration. The failed lug did not appear to have been modified and did not appear to be in compliance with the AD. Review of the aircraft logbook revealed that a 100 hour / annual inspection was completed on May 23, 2005. The inspection entry noted AD 2003-13-15 R1. In addition, the airworthiness compliance record noted that the AD had been complied with by performing a dye penetrant inspection without finding any cracks. The entry also stated that the modification kit was not installed at that time.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 2,300 hours in all; 1,000 in this make and model; 35 in the last 90 days; 10 in the last 30 days; 2,300 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: August 1, 2004
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,681 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 1, 2005
- Maximum gross weight: 1,670 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming HIO-360-A1A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PVT Sullivan OH at 10:20 pm
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 68°F (20°C), dew point 50°F (10°C)
- Altimeter: 30.01 inHg
- Observation at 10:52 pm from MFD, 17 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.
Other NTSB records under N9471F the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.