Summary
On April 17, 1989, a Bell UH-1E (N118HS) was involved in an accident near Aiken, SC. The accident resulted in 1 serious injury. The aircraft sustained substantial damage.
The National Transportation Safety Board determined the probable cause of this accident to be: IMPROPER INSTALLATION OF A TAIL ROTOR PITCH CHANGE CROSSHEAD RETENTION BOLT BY THE COMPANY MECHANIC, WHICH RESULTED IN LOOSENING OF THE BOLT AND EVENTUAL FAILURE OF THE TAIL ROTOR ASSEMBLY/BLADE AND SUBSEQUENT LOSS OF CONTROL. TREES AT THE CRASH SITE CONTRIBUTED TO HELICOPTER DAMAGE.
This accident is documented in NTSB report ATL89FA130. AviatorDB cross-references NTSB investigation data with FAA registry records to provide comprehensive safety information for aircraft N118HS.
Accident Details
Probable Cause and Findings
IMPROPER INSTALLATION OF A TAIL ROTOR PITCH CHANGE CROSSHEAD RETENTION BOLT BY THE COMPANY MECHANIC, WHICH RESULTED IN LOOSENING OF THE BOLT AND EVENTUAL FAILURE OF THE TAIL ROTOR ASSEMBLY/BLADE AND SUBSEQUENT LOSS OF CONTROL. TREES AT THE CRASH SITE CONTRIBUTED TO HELICOPTER DAMAGE.
Aircraft Information
Registered Owner (Historical)
Data Source
Data provided by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). For more information on this event, visit the NTSB Records Search website. NTSB# ATL89FA130