Skip to content

MIA94LA165

1994-06-22 · SARASOTA, Florida, United States · Serious · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport SRQ

N520TC has since been reassigned. It is now registered to a different aircraft (DASSAULT/SUD FAN JET FALCON), which was not involved in this event.

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

ALTITUDE MISJUDGED BY THE PILOT.

Factual narrative

On June 22, 1994, about 1045 eastern daylight time, a Hughes 369HS, N520TC, registered to C & C Endeavers, crashed into the Sarasota Bay near Sarasota, Florida, while on a 14 CFR Part 91 aerial photography flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time and no flight plan was filed. The helicopter was substantially damaged and the airline transport- rated pilot and one passenger sustained minor injuries. One passenger sustained serious injuries. The flight originated about 1015 from the Sarasota/Bradenton International Airport, Sarasota, Florida. During an aerial photography flight the helicopter was flown into the water. One of the passengers who was in the right rear seat was wearing a harness which was secured to the seatbelt anchor by a nylon rope. After impact with the water the nylon rope broke and the passenger was ejected from the helicopter. The passenger sustained a fractured and dislocated shoulder. THE HELICOPTER FLEW INTO WATER DURING AN AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY FLIGHT. A PASSENGER IN THE HELICOPTER WAS WEARING A HARNESS AND WAS SECURED TO THE SEAT BELT ANCHOR BY A NYLON ROPE. THE NYLON ROPE BROKE AND THE PASSENGER WAS EJECTED. THE PASSENGER SUSTAINED A FRACTURED AND DISLOCATED SHOULDER. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1994_MIA94LA165.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

Search this event elsewhere

External sources are reported, not agency: signal that something happened, not fact about what happened.