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CEN10CA268

2010-05-24 · Pearsall, Texas, United States · Serious · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport T30

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot's failure to see and avoid the power lines.

Factual narrative

While flying east, the pilot put the helicopter into a slip and descent to the north (left) to look at something closer on the left side of the helicopter. During the descent the helicopter hit unseen power lines on its left side, breaking the power lines and seriously injuring the passenger in the left seat. The pilot landed nearby and called for medical assistance for the passenger. The passenger later stated they had been hunting hogs at the time of the accident and the hog they were after had gone under the helicopter from the right to the left and "the pilot put the helicopter into a left slip" and that was the last thing he could remember about the flight. The pilot said he and a passenger were checking fields and areas around the fields for any problems or damage. While flying east the pilot put the helicopter into a slip and descent to the north (left) to look at something closer on the left side of the helicopter. During the descent the helicopter hit unseen power lines on its left side, breaking the power lines and seriously injuring the passenger in the left seat. The pilot landed nearby and called for medical assistance for the passenger. The passenger later stated they had been hunting hogs at the time of the accident and the hog they were after had gone under the helicopter from the right to the left and "the pilot put the helicopter into a left slip" and that was the last thing he could remember about the flight. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • C Personnel issues-Psychological-Attention/monitoring-Task monitoring/vigilance-Pilot - C
  • — Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-Wire-Awareness of condition
  • — Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-Wire-Effect on equipment

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2010_CEN10CA268.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.