Hughes 269C accident near Ft. Myers, Florida, February 27, 1982
On February 27, 1982 at about 4:00 pm local time, a Hughes 269C (helicopter), registered N1100W, was substantially damaged in an accident near Ft. Myers, Florida (Lehigh West airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 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 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
- February 27, 1982 · about 4:00 pm local time
- Place
- Ft. Myers, Florida · Lehigh West
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Hughes 269C · all 269Cs on the register
- Registration
- N1100W · registry record · serial 900955
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING FLIGHT ENGINE RPM'S DROPPED AND PILOT IMMEDIATELY LANDED ON A ROAD. THE PILOT STATED HE ATTEMPTED TO CHECK THE ENGINE POWER BY BRINGING THE HELICOPTER TO A HOVER AND MOVING IT APPROXIMATELY 30 FEET THREE TIMES. THE POWER APPEARED NORMAL SO HE ELECTED TO TAKEOFF. DURING HIS NEXT APPROACH, WHILE AT APPROXIMATELY 25 FEET AGL, HE ATTEMPTED TO PULL COLLECTIVE AND GOT AN INDICATION OF NO POWER. THE PILOT STATED HE THEN DROPPED THE COLLECTIVE PART WAY AND ATTEMPTED AN EMERGENCY LANDING.
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: private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 3,284 hours in all; 149 in this make and model; 37 in the last 90 days; 14 in the last 30 days; 3,284 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 237 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 41 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,080 lb
- Seats: 3
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming HIO-360-D1A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Ft. Myers FL at 10:58 am
- Destination: Ft. Myers FL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 5, 2,833 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 190° at 12 knots
- Visibility: 14 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 25,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 181°F (83°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:00 am from FMY, 7 miles away
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.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number MIA82DA059.