Hughes 500D/369D accident near Mc Cordsville, Indiana, October 30, 1984
On October 30, 1984 at about 8:30 pm local time, a Hughes 500D/369D (helicopter), registered N8069G, was substantially damaged in an accident near Mc Cordsville, Indiana (Brookside airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). 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 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 30, 1984 · about 8:30 pm local time
- Place
- Mc Cordsville, Indiana · Brookside · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Hughes 500D/369D
- Registration
- N8069G · registry record · serial 02320
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE HELICOPTER LANDED HARD DURING AN AUTOROTATIVE DESCENT WHILE ON A TEST FLT & CHOPPED OFF THE TAIL BOOM. THE PLT STATED HE LOST POWER AT 150 FT AGL & ENTERED AUTOROTATION. INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE FUEL QUANTITY FLOAT HAD BECOME INTANGLED WITH THE FUEL PUMP ELECTRICAL LINE. THIS RESULTED IN AN INDICATION OF 150 LBS OF FUEL ON THE FUEL GAUGE WHEN IN FACT THERE WAS NO FUEL IN THE TANKS, LINES OR FILTERS. THERE IS A WARNING IN THE MAINTENANCE MANUAL STATING THE FUEL PUMP ELECTRICAL LINE SHOULD BE TIE WRAPPED TO THE FUEL LINE SO AS NOT TO INTERFERE WITH THE FLOAT.
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, private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 2,588 hours in all; 1,026 in this make and model; 44 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,322 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 29, 1983; 1 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,550 lb
- Seats: 5
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Allison 250-C20B (turboshaft); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 121 Brookside IN at 8:25 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 210° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 9 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 8,000 ft; scat at 2,500 ft
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:47 pm from IND, 25 miles away
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.