Hughes 269 accident near Valley City, North Dakota, June 15, 1993
On June 15, 1993 at about 12:30 pm local time, a Hughes 269 (helicopter), registered N213MS, was substantially damaged in an accident near Valley City, North Dakota. It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). 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
the pilot-in-command's failure to maintain clearance from a tree during an aerial application manuever.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 15, 1993 · about 12:30 pm local time
- Place
- Valley City, North Dakota · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Hughes 269 · all 269s on the register
- Registration
- N213MS · no longer on the register · serial S1309
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT REPORTED HE WAS APPLYING HERBICIDE WITH THE HELICOPTER ON SLOPING TERRAIN WITH AN ISOLATED TREE NEARBY. HE APPROACHED THE TREE TO APPLY HERBICIDE AND INADVERTENTLY STRUCK A TREE BRANCH WITH THE MAIN ROTOR BLADE. THE PILOT LOST CONTROL OF THE HELICOPTER AND IT CRASHED IN THE FIELD ADJACENT TO THE TREE.
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: airline transport pilot, flight instructor, commercial pilot, flight engineer
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 6,200 hours in all; 125 in this make and model; 8 in the last 90 days; 6 in the last 30 days; 4,100 as pilot in command; 700 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection
- Maximum gross weight: 2,020 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming HIO-360-D1A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:30 am
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.
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.