Hughes 269 accident near Mesa, Arizona, July 16, 1983
On July 16, 1983 at about 1:00 am local time, a Hughes 269 (helicopter), registered N8773F, was substantially damaged in an accident near Mesa, Arizona. It was an instructional flight 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
- July 16, 1983 · about 1:00 am local time
- Place
- Mesa, Arizona · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Hughes 269 · all 269s on the register
- Registration
- N8773F · registry record · serial 0097
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE INSTRUCTOR WAS DEMONSTRATING A POWER RECOVERY AUTOROTATION TO A DRY RIVER BED, WHICH HE INITIATED AT 500 FEET AGL BY ROLLING OFF THE THROTTLE AND LOWERING THE COLLECTIVE. APRX 5 SECONDS LATER HE OBSERVED A CHANGE IN SOUND AND NOTICED THE ENGINE RPM AT 0. HE CONTINUED TO AUTOROTATE AND OVERSHOT THE SOFT GRAVEL AREA OF THE SOFT RIVER BED AND TOUCHED DOWN IN AN AREA COVERED WITH LARGE ROCKS. THE RIGHT SKID BROKE AND THE MAIN ROTOR STRUCK AND SEVERED THE TAIL BOOM. THE HELICOPTER CAME TO REST ON ITS RIGHT SIDE.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 4,180 hours in all; 100 in this make and model; 320 in the last 90 days; 3,807 as pilot in command; 11 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 462 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection; 78 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,550 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming HO-360-B1B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: P16 Mesa
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 330° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 40 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 99°F (37°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
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.
Other NTSB records under N8773F the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.