Sikorsky H-19D accident near Halifax, Massachusetts, August 3, 1983
On August 3, 1983 at about 11:32 pm local time, a Sikorsky H-19D (helicopter), registered N37799, was substantially damaged in an accident near Halifax, Massachusetts. It was a personal flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). 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 November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 3, 1983 · about 11:32 pm local time · cases in 1983
- Place
- Halifax, Massachusetts
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Sikorsky H-19D
- Registration
- N37799 · no longer on the register · serial 15-642
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AFTER ARRIVING AT THE FIELD TO BE SPRAYED, THE PLT INITIATED A DESCENT TO BEGIN AERIAL APPLICATION. AT APRX 40 FT AGL & 50 KTS, THE ENG FAILED. THE PLT ENTERED AN AUTOROTATION, BUT COULD NOT AVOID TELEPHONE WIRES. HE WAS ABLE TO AVOID HITTING A DIKE, BUT IN DOING SO, HE FLARED IN A NOSE HIGH ATTITUDE. SUBSEQUENTLY, THE TAIL SKID & ROTOR IMPACTED THE TERRAIN. AN INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE #1 EXHAUST VALVE HAD FAILED.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 9,377 hours in all; 1,117 in this make and model; 321 in the last 90 days; 9,210 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,481 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, March 15, 1983; 90 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 7,900 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Wright R-1300-30 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MA02 Hanson MA
- Destination: Halifax MA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 245° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 79°F (26°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
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.
Other NTSB records under N37799 the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N37799: not on the register today · the record of its deregistration
- Sikorsky 825 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Wright R-1300-30 27 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Msp Ghq Heliport · departed from
- Accidents and incidents in Massachusetts 987 since 1982 · 90 in the last ten years
- Massachusetts 2,646 aircraft registered
- Other NTSB records under N37799 1 records · the number may have belonged to another aircraft at the time
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/NYC83FNA04.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.