Hughes 269B accident near Baldwin, Wisconsin, September 26, 1986
On September 26, 1986 at about 3:30 pm local time, a Hughes 269B (helicopter), registered N9427F, was substantially damaged in an accident near Baldwin, Wisconsin. It was a business flight 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
- September 26, 1986 · about 3:30 pm local time
- Place
- Baldwin, Wisconsin · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Hughes 269B · all 269Bs on the register
- Registration
- N9427F · no longer on the register · serial 5-0174
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AFTER PICKING UP HIS PASSENGER AT WILLIAMS PIPELINE, MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA, THE PLT FLEW EASTWARD ALONG INTERSTATE 90 ENROUTE TO A PIPELINE NEAR WAUSAU, WISCONSIN. WHILE FLYING AT APPROXIMATELLY 400 FEET, THE PLT AND PASSENGER STATED THAT THE ENGINE STARTED TO MAKE A GRINDING OR KNOCKING NOISE AND THAT THERE WAS AN ALMOST INSTANTANEOUS LOSS OF POWER. THE PLT THEN DROPPED THE COLLECTIVE AND TURNED APPROXIMATELY 40 DEGREES TO THE SANDY, UPWARD SLOPING GROUND. THE NOSE OF THE AIRCRAFT REMAINED LOW AND THE TAILBOOM RAISED. THE MAIN ROTOR BLADES THEN STRUCK THE TAILBOOM. WRECKAGE EXAMINATION REVEALED THAT THE NUMBER FOUR PISTON ROD PROTRUDED THROUGH THE ENGINE CASE, WHICH WAS CRACKED FROM THE HOLE TO THE NUMBER FOUR CYLINDER BASE.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 2,545 hours in all; 200 in this make and model; 145 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,240 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, September 17, 1986; 10 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,670 lb
- Seats: 3
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming HIO-360-AIA (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Dagnon Aviation
The flight
- Departed from: Minneapolis MN
- Destination: Chippewa Falls WI
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 220° at 9 knots, gusting 11
- Visibility: 8 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 82°F (28°C), dew point 75°F (24°C)
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.
Other NTSB records under N9427F 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.