Hughes 269A accident near Sellersburg, Indiana, December 26, 1990
On December 26, 1990 at about 6:30 pm local time, a Hughes 269A (helicopter), registered N90270, was substantially damaged in an accident near Sellersburg, Indiana. 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).
Preview. This page is not yet listed for search engines.
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
A PILOT INDUCED LOSS OF ENGINE POWER BY INADVERTENT DEACTIVATION OF THE FUEL MIXTURE CONTROL.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 26, 1990 · about 6:30 pm local time
- Place
- Sellersburg, Indiana · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Hughes 269A · all 269As on the register
- Registration
- N90270 · registry record · serial 66-18283
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT WAS CHECKING THE RADIOS DURING A LOW ALTITUDE FLIGHT. THE PILOT WANTED SOME CABIN HEAT, REACHED FOR THE CABIN HEATER LEVER, AND MOVED IT TO WHAT HE BELIEVED WAS THE FULL 'ON' POSITION. HE LATER LEARNED HE MOVED THE FUEL MIXTURE CONTROL TO THE FULL 'LEAN' POSITION. THE HELICOPTER'S ENGINE FAILED AND THE PILOT HAD LITTLE TIME TO AFFECT A STABILIZED AUTOROTATION. AFTER TOUCHDOWN THE HELICOPTER SLID SIDEWAYS ON WET SOD AND ROLLED OVER.
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
- LOSS OF ENGINE POWER(TOTAL) - NONMECHANICAL during cruise
- FORCED LANDING during descent - emergency
- HARD LANDING during landing - flare/touchdown
- ROLL OVER during other
Pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land, none, helicopter
- Flight time: 5,800 hours in all; 5,050 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: class 2
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,600 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming HIO-360B1A (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Hap'S Aerial Enterprises
- Operating certificate: in the vicinity
The flight
- Departed from: JVY Sellersburg IN at 6:26 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 030° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 25,000 ft; scattered at 10,000 ft
- Temperature: 0°C, dew point 0°C
- Observation at 6:52 pm from LOU, 16 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Other NTSB records under N90270 the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number CHI91LA048.