Hughes 269C accident near Bondurant, Wyoming, January 20, 1982
On January 20, 1982 at about 11:30 pm local time, a Hughes 269C (helicopter), registered N7402F, was substantially damaged in an accident near Bondurant, Wyoming. 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
- January 20, 1982 · about 11:30 pm local time
- Place
- Bondurant, Wyoming · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Hughes 269C · all 269Cs on the register
- Registration
- N7402F · no longer on the register · serial 650412
- 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 PILOT STATED THAT HE BECAME DISORIENTED IN A WHITE OUT CONDITION DUE TO BLOWING SNOW DURING A LANDING ATTEMPT. HE THEN LOWERED THE COLLECTIVE TO STOP THE BLOWING SNOW AND THE LEFT SIDE OF THE HELICOPTER BROKE THROUGH THE CRUST OF A FOUR FOOT THICK SNOW COVER. THE AIRCRAFT ROLLED OVER. SIX INCHES OF SNOW HAD RECENTLY FALLEN.
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: rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 2,800 hours in all; 1,630 in this make and model; 75 in the last 90 days; 2,800 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,232 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 90 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,050 lb
- Seats: 3
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming HIO-360-D1A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Bondurant WY
- Destination: Bondurant WY
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; clear
- Temperature: 50°F (10°C), dew point 0°F (-18°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.
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.