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Atlas / NTSB / WPR20LA323

NTSB CAROL · Event

Event WPR20LA323

2020-09-22 Chemehuevi Valley, California, United States Airport · 49X None 1 aircraft Status: Completed

Registry · N509CG

FAA Aircraft Registry record.

Make / Model

MD HELICOPTERS INC 369HS

Year of manufacture

1974 · 46 years old at event

TCDS

H3WE · MD HELICOPTERS INC (MDHI)

Engine

ALLISON 250-C20 (400 hp)

Seats / Engines

2 seats · 1 engine

Last airworthiness date

20170215

ADS-B equipped

Yes — Mode-S A65B98

Registrant of record

CGCK HOLDINGS LLC

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot’s failure to maintain helicopter control during an approach with a gusting variable wind, which resulted in an impact with terrain.

Factual narrative

The pilot reported that, he was decelerating the helicopter while on approach to the runway with a gusting variable wind when the helicopter unexpectedly yawed to the right. He applied full left anti-torque pedal input to no avail, so he applied forward cyclic to increase forward airspeed, but the helicopter continued to spin clockwise. He immediately reduced power to land, but the left skid struck a bush and the helicopter impacted terrain and rolled over, coming to rest on its left side. The fuselage and the tail boom were substantially damaged. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the helicopter that would have precluded normal operation. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

Hierarchical cause / factor breakdown from the FAA bulk avdata database. Each finding tagged C (Cause) or F (Factor).

  • Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot
  • Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-Gusts-Effect on operation

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2020_WPR20LA323.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.