Hughes 269A accident near Paso Robles, California, June 25, 2001
On June 25, 2001 at about 2:30 am local time, a Hughes 269A (helicopter), registered N8724F, was substantially damaged in an accident near Paso Robles, California (Paso Robles Municipal airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured; 1 other was unhurt. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the pilot's failure to maintain rotor rpm during a practice autorotational landing, which resulted in a hard landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 25, 2001 · about 2:30 am local time
- Place
- Paso Robles, California · Paso Robles Municipal · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured; 1 other was unhurt.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Hughes 269A · all 269As on the register
- Registration
- N8724F · registry record · serial 12-0039
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The single engine helicopter impacted the ground hard during an autorotational landing following a simulated loss of engine power. The flight instructor was simulating the loss of engine power to his student and noticed the rotor rpm was low when the helicopter was approximately 400 feet above the ground. The instructor ensured the collective was lowered all the way and placed the cyclic forward, but was unable to recover the rotor rpm. He flared the helicopter, but it landed hard resulting in the main rotor blades severing the tail boom.
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; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: helicopter; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 4,000 hours in all; 300 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: serious injuries
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 2,100 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming HO-360 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PRB Paso Robles CA at 1:45 am
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 300° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 68°F (20°C), dew point 43°F (6°C)
- Altimeter: 29.98 inHg
- Observation at 2:53 am from PRB
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | 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.