Hughes TH-55A accident near Council Bluffs, Iowa, February 25, 1983
On February 25, 1983 at about 9:38 pm local time, a Hughes TH-55A (helicopter), registered N1040S, was substantially damaged in an accident near Council Bluffs, Iowa (Council Bluffs Municipal airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person had minor injuries; 1 other was unhurt. The weather was conditions the NTSB did not record.
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 25, 1983 · about 9:38 pm local time
- Place
- Council Bluffs, Iowa · Council Bluffs Municipal · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries; 1 other was unhurt.
- Weather
- conditions the NTSB did not record
- Aircraft
- Hughes TH-55A · all TH-55As on the register
- Registration
- N1040S · no longer on the register · serial 6418194
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE STUDENT, WHO WAS A RATED HELICOPTER PLT, AND A HELICOPTER INSTRUCTOR (CFI) WERE ON A DUAL INSTRUCTIONAL FLT. AFTER TAKEOFF, THE AIRCREW REMAINED IN A RIGHT TRAFFIC PATTERN FOR RWY 13 , INTENDING FOR THE STUDENT TO MAKE A 180 DEG AUTOROTATION TO A PARALLEL TAXIWAY. THE STUDENT OVERSHOT THE AUTOROTATIVE TURN & THE CFI INSTRUCTED HIM TO CONTINUE THE APCH TO A GRASS AREA BETWEEN THE TAXIWAY & RWY. THE CFI REPORTED THAT THE TOUCHDOWN WAS SMOOTH WITH ZERO AIRSPEED. HOWEVER, THE HELICOPTER BEGAN VIBRATING & TURNED TO THE LEFT. REPORTEDLY, THE MAIN ROTOR BLADES HAD SEVERED 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; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 2,200 hours in all; 25 in this make and model; 100 in the last 90 days; 15 in the last 30 days; 2,020 as pilot in command; 1,700 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,356 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection; 30 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,400 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming HIO-360-A1A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 160° at 12 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 2,500 ft
- Temperature: 36°F (2°C), dew point 21°F (-6°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:47 pm from OMA, 6 miles away
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.
Other NTSB records under N1040S 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.