Colorado Aviation Accidents & Incidents

On December 6, 2000, at approximately 1510 mountain standard time, a Hughes 369D, N411SM, was destroyed when it rolled over during a forced landinging near Montrose, Colorado. The commercial pilot and his two passengers were not injured. Helicopters by OZ, Inc., was operating the aircraft under Title 14 CFR Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for this local public use flight that had originated at approximately 1445 from a staging area. No flight plan had been filed.

The helicopter was operating under contract with the State of Colorado's Division of Wildlife, and was engaged in an animal capture program. The pilot said that the net-gunner had deployed a net over a deer when he felt the helicopter begin to "shake violently." He said that the helicopter was approximately 10 feet off the ground; he landed it with 10 to 15 knots of forward speed. After sliding approximately 10 feet, the pilot heard a loud bang, and the aircraft rolled right and forward. The helicopter came to rest on its left side with its right landing skid broken, its tail boom separated, and its main rotor blades destroyed.

Postaccident examination of the helicopter's main rotor blades revealed that one blade had leading edge damage that corresponded in size to a missing net weight. the foreign object damage to a main rotor blade, while maneuvering.