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WPR10CA094

2010-01-01 · Tipton, California, United States · Minor · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport VIS

Current FAA registration · N440NR

Make / Model
HILLER UH-12E
Year of manufacture
1964 · 46 years old at event
Engine
LYCOMING VO-540 SERIES (310 hp)
Seats / Engines
4 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
19890725
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A54BD9

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from terrain.

Factual narrative

While maneuvering at low level over a field during an aerial application flight, the pilot took his hand off the collective to adjust the sun visor because the sun was in his eyes. The pilot reported that he had used his leg to block the collective from moving as he adjusted the visor. The helicopter hit mild turbulence and bumped his leg away from the collective. The collective slipped down, and the helicopter impacted the ground and rolled over on its side. The helicopter sustained substantial damage to the tailboom and cockpit. The pilot stated that there were no mechanical failures or malfunctions with the helicopter's flight control system or engine prior to the accident. While maneuvering at low level over a field during an aerial application flight, the helicopter pilot took his hand off the collective to adjust the sun visor because the sun was in his eyes. The pilot reported that he had used his leg to block the collective from moving as he adjusted the visor. The helicopter hit mild turbulence and bumped his leg away from the collective. The collective slipped down, and the helicopter impacted the ground and rolled over on its side. The helicopter sustained substantial damage to the tailboom and cockpit. The pilot stated that there were no mechanical failures or malfunctions with the helicopter's flight control system or engine prior to the accident. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • C Environmental issues-Physical environment-Terrain-(general)-Response/compensation - C
  • C Personnel issues-Psychological-Attention/monitoring-Task monitoring/vigilance-Pilot - C

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2010_WPR10CA094.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.

Related research

Matched on aircraft type or causal vocabulary (turbulence). All research papers