Hughes 369HS accident near El Paso, Texas, July 21, 1984
On July 21, 1984 at about 4:00 pm local time, a Hughes 369HS (helicopter), registered N9183F, was destroyed in an accident near El Paso, Texas. It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). 1 person was seriously injured. 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
- July 21, 1984 · about 4:00 pm local time
- Place
- El Paso, Texas · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Hughes 369HS · all 369HSs on the register
- Registration
- N9183F · no longer on the register · serial 440593S
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE HELICOPTER CRASHED INTO A FIELD DURING AN AERIAL APPLICATION FLIGHT. THERE WERE NO EYEWITNESSES TO THE CRASH. THE PILOT WAS PULLED FROM THE WRECKAGE BY A FARM WORKER WHO HEARD THE CRASH. THE PILOT WOULD NOT STATE TO INVESTIGATORS WHAT OCCURRED.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 12,265 hours in all; 2,000 in this make and model; 40 in the last 90 days; 12,250 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,540 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection; 30 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,400 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Allison 250-C20B (turboshaft); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 150° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 40 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 12,000 ft
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 61°F (16°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:55 pm from ELP
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.