Information on U.S. Army helicopter OH-6A tail number 67-16367
The Army purchased this helicopter 1068
Total flight hours at this point: 00000081
Date: 12/20/1968
Incident number: 681220191ACD Accident case number: 681220191 Total loss or fatality Accident
Unit: 58 TC BN
The station for this helicopter was Da Nang in South Vietnam
Number killed in accident = 3 . . Injured = 0 . . Passengers = 2
costing 241662
Original source(s) and document(s) from which the incident was created or updated: Defense Intelligence Agency Helicopter Loss database. Army Aviation Safety Center database. Also: OPERA (Operations Report. )
Loss to Inventory
Crew Members:
P WO1 HAGGARD DARRELL LYNN KIA
ME SP5 SMITH ROBERT EUGENE JR KIA
Passengers and/or other participants:
SP4 SCHNEBEL ROBERT FRED, AR, ME, KIA
Accident Summary:
^OH-6A SN 67-16367^ WAS TURNED IN TO THE ^142ND TC CO.^ ON ^17 DECEMBER 1968^ FOR MAINTENANCE. ON ^20 DEC CW3 DAVID C. GIPSON^, QAULITY CONTROL OFFICER, PERFORMED A TEST FLIGHT AT^1430^HOURS FOR REPLACEMENT OF THE MAIN ROTOR HUB, BLADE TRACKING, AND OTHER REPAIRS. THE AIRCRAFT WAS RELEASED FOR FLIGHT AT 1600 BY ^CWO GIPSON^. MAINTENANCE PERSONNEL HAD DIFFICULTY REMOVING ONE OF THE BLADE TRACKING "CAT-EYES" AND CONSUMED ABOUT THIRTY MINUTES IN REMOVING THE "EYES". ^MR. ED JOHNSON, COLLINS RADIO COMPANY FSR,^ REQUESTED ANOTHER TEST FLIGHT FOR A CHECK OF THE FM RADIO. THE RADIO TEST FLIGHT WAS FLOWN BY ^WO HAGGARD^, THE PILOT FROM THE OWING UNIT. ^WO HAGGARD^ LANDED AND REPORTED A VERTICAL VIBRATION AND ^CWO GIPSON^ BOARDED THE AIRCRAFT. DURING THIS FLIGHT ^CWO GIPSON^ ADVISED ^WO HAGGARD^ OF THE LOCATION OF THE RADIO TOWERS AT FLC. THE FLIGHT WAS TERMINATED AND ^CWO GIPSON^ STATES THAT A VERTICAL VIBRATION DID IN FACT, EXIST. MAINTENANCE PERSONNEL SUSPECTED THAT A BLADE TRIM TAB HAD BEEN BENT DURING THE REMOVAL OF THE CAT-EYE. THE HELICOPTER WAS PREPARED FOR TRACKING AND ^WO HAGGARD, SP5 SMITH, AND SP4 SCHNEBEL, AND SP4 GEHRMAN^, MADE A FLIGHT FOR THE PURPOSE OF TRACKING THE BLADES. THE FLIGHT WAS COMPLETED AND THE HELICOPTER RETURNED TO^RED BEACH^FOR FINAL TRIM TAB ADJUSTMENTS. THE LAST FLIGHT WAS MADE FROM ^RED BEACH ARMY AIRFIELD^ FOR THE PURPOSE OF VERIFYING THE FINAL TRIM ADJUSTMENTS. THE AIRCRAFT DEPARTED AND AT APPROXIMATELY ^1730 HOURS^ , STRUCK A GUY WIRE ATTACHED TO A 400 FOOT RADIO TOWER AT FLC COMPOUND. THE HELICOPTER CRASHED IN TWO FEET OF WATER AND THE THREE OCCUPANTS WERE KILLED.\\
This record was last updated on 09/20/1998
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Date posted on this site: 11/13/2023
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