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OH-6 Cayuse/65-12933

Serial #: 65-12933
Construction #: -
Civil Registration:
  N8524Z
Model: OH-6A
Name: None
Status: Wrecked
Last info: 2003
   History:
U.S. Border Patrol Air Operations, El Paso, TX, 1991-2003.
- Registered as N8524Z.
- Crashed and heavily damaged in non-fatal accident, Eagle Pass, TX, Oct. 07, 2003.
NTSB Identification: FTW04TA012
14 CFR Public Use
Accident occurred Tuesday, October 07, 2003 in Eagle Pass, TX
Aircraft: Hughes OH-6A, registration: N8524Z
Injuries: 1 Minor.

This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors.
Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed.

On October 7, 2003, at 1158 central daylight time, a Hughes OH-6A helicopter, N8524Z, registered to and operated by the U.S. Border Patrol, El Paso, Texas, was substantially damaged during a forced landing following a loss of tail rotor effect near Eagle Pass, Texas. The commercial helicopter pilot sustained minor injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and a flight plan was not filed for the public use flight. The local flight originated at 1021 from the Del Rio International Airport, Del Rio, Texas.

The pilot reported that, while in a hover about 45 feet above ground, the helicopter began to spin about its vertical axis twice to the right before it impacted the ground and rolled over on its left side. The pilot reported that the tail rotor was not turning when the helicopter hit the ground.

Source(s):
Federal Aviation Administration, www.faa.gov, Washington D.C., 2003.
National Transportation & Saftery Board (NTSB), 2003.
 Photo Source(s):
None.